Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the most common cause of blindness in the UK accounting for 16 000 registrations of blindness every year. One in fifty people over the age of 65 in the UK are blind in one or both eyes due to AMD. Macular degeneration is always a bilateral disease but one eye is usually more severely affected than the other. Smoking is the most important risk factor for development of AMD. The risk of developing AMD is 3.6 times greater for smokers and former smokers than those who have never smoked.
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