Developments in age-related macular degeneration: Diagnosis and treatment

Age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) is the leading cause of legal blindness of Americans over age 65 years. Severe loss of vision is usually due to exudative ARMD, of which there are about 200,000 new cases in the United States annually. Until recently, only a small fraction of patients benefited from treatment, but advances in the early diagnosis of the disease and major developments in therapy have substantially improved the prognosis of patients with ARMD. Because visual loss substantially reduces quality of life, effective management of ARMD will have increasing public health importance as the population ages. The American Academy of Ophthalmology recommends that people over age 65 years should have a comprehensive eye examination every 1 to 2 years to check for cataracts, macular degeneration, glaucoma, and other conditions. Those who complain of difficulty reading, driving at night, or adapting from sunlight to indoor lighting might have macular degeneration.