FAMILY MEDICINE® COLUMN
By John C. Wolf, D.O.
Associate Professor of Family Medicine®
Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine

[AMD CAN STEAL YOUR CENTRAL VISION IN A MATTER OF DAYS]

Question: My husband has lost most of his vision in his right eye. The doctor has told us he has macular degeneration and that there isnÌt anything that can be done to restore his vision. Is this true?

Answer: Macular degeneration is a common eye problem that afflicts 20 percent of those 65 and older, but it also occurs in younger individuals. There are a few subtle variants of this condition, but the most common is age-related macular degeneration Û often referred to by its initials, AMD.

The macula is an area in the back of the eye responsible for our sharpest vision, and it is located in the center of the visual field. When something on the edges of the visual field catches our attention, we shift the eye to look at it more closely. The eye movement repositions the image so that it now falls on the macula to provide the sharpest view.

In AMD, part or all of the macula is damaged. As you would guess, this distorts, or may totally eliminate, the clear vision obtained when looking straight at an object. This life-changing disability often comes on over a period of a few days, but it may develop even more quickly or more slowly.

The first thing a person with AMD often notices is that he or she is having difficulty reading. The print appears fuzzy or indistinct, or it may even seem that words disappear when looking straight at them. Objects that form a straight line, like a telephone pole or the siding on a building, may also appear wavy when you know it isnÌt.

As your husbandÌs eye doctor told you, there is no treatment that will reverse macular degeneration. Multiple vitamins, high doses of antioxidant vitamins, smoking cessation, bright light avoidance, and injection of medications behind the eye have all been tried. Unfortunately, none of these treatments have consistently demonstrated improvement for sufferers of AMD.

Though macular degeneration is a serious disability, it is not as terrible as other causes of blindness that produce total loss of vision. Those who have AMD in one eye have an increased risk of developing it in the other eye. Fortunately, this doesnÌt happen to all sufferers of the condition. Also, the peripheral vision is typically maintained. Only those activities that require very accurate vision, things like threading a sewing needle, reading fine print and driving are now Ïoff-limits.Ó

May is National Sight-Saving Month. It would be a good time to see your eye doctor Û either an ophthalmologist, a physician who specializes in treating eye and vision problems, or an optometrist, a doctor who is trained to examine the eye for vision problems and eye disorders. This eye checkup will help protect your vision, one of our most important senses.

Family Medicine® is a weekly column. To submit questions, write to John C. Wolf, D.O., Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Grosvenor Hall, Athens, Ohio 45701.