Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD): Treatments
A condition in which there is a slow breakdown of in the center of the (the light-sensitive layers of at the back of the ). This blocks vision in the center of the eye and can cause problems with activities such as reading and driving. Age-related is most often seen in people who are over the age of 50.
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About Treatments for Advanced Neovascular (Wet) AMD
Neovascular AMD typically results in severe vision loss. However, care professionals can try different to stop further vision loss. You should remember that the therapies described below are not a cure. The condition may progress even with .
One option to slow the progression of neovascular AMD is to inject drugs into the . With neovascular AMD, abnormally high levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) are secreted in your . VEGF is a that promotes the growth of new abnormal . Anti-VEGF blocks this growth.
If you get this , you may need multiple monthly . Before each , your will be numbed and cleaned with antiseptics. To further reduce the risk of , you may be prescribed antibiotic drops. A few different anti-VEGF drugs are available. They vary in cost and in how often they need to be injected, so you may wish to discuss these issues with your eye care professional.
This technique involves of select areas of the . First, a drug called will be injected into a in your . The drug travels through the in your body, and is absorbed by new, growing blood vessels. Your care professional then shines a laser beam into your eye to activate the drug in the new abnormal blood vessels, while sparing normal ones.
Once activated, the drug closes off the new , slows their growth, and slows the rate of vision loss. This procedure is less common than anti-VEGF , and is often used in combination with them for specific types of neovascular AMD.
care professionals treat certain cases of neovascular AMD with , though this is less common than other . It involves aiming an intense “hot” laser at the abnormal in your to destroy them. This laser is not the same one used in which may be referred to as a “cold” laser.
This is more likely to be used when growth is limited to a compact area in your , away from the center of the macula, that can be easily targeted with the . Even so, also may destroy some surrounding healthy . This often results in a small where the laser has scarred the . In some cases, vision immediately after the surgery may be worse than it was before. But the surgery may also help prevent more severe vision loss from occurring years later.
