Pathogenic aspects of age-related macular degeneration (AMD)

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of legal blindness among the elderly in the Western nations. Many patients suffer from severe central visual growth of choroidal neovascularization or alternatively due to geographic atrophy of the retinal pigment epithelium with having no treatment available for most of the patients. Besides age other recognized risk factors for AMD are genetic predisposition, smoking and cardiovascular diseases. Phototraumatic retinal damage, anti-oxidative capacity as well as lipofuscin accumulation in retinal pigment epithelial cells seem to be important contributing factors in the development of AMD. The hypothesis that inflammatory mechanisms play an important role in the pathogenesis of the disease is strengthened by the recent identification of polymorphisms in the complement factor H. The latest identification of angiogenesis key regulators allowed a better understanding of underlying disease mechanisms and the development of novel treatment approaches in patients with choroidal neovascularisation.