Age-related macular degeneration is a progressive degenerative eye condition that causes painless loss of central vision in those aged 55 years or over. It is a disease normally associated with the elderly, and is therefore a growing problem worldwide due to our ageing population. The cause is suspected to be multi-factorial and no cure has been found. However, there are novel treatments available that can help delay its progression.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AREDS Group. (2001) A randomized, placebo-controlled, clinical trial of high-dose supplementation with vitamins C and E, beta carotene, and zinc for age-related macular degeneration and vision loss: AREDS report no. 8. Archives of Ophthalmology119(10): 1417–1436.
2.
AREDS 2 Research Group. (2013) Lutein + zeaxanthin and omega-3 fatty acids for age-related macular degeneration: The Age-Related Eye Disease Study 2 (AREDS2) randomized clinical trial. Journal of the American Medical Association309(19): 2005–2015. doi: 10.1001/jama.2013.4997.
3.
BresslerN. M.& Treatment of Age-Related Macular Degeneration with Photodynamic Therapy (TAP) Study Group. (2001) Photodynamic therapy of subfoveal choroidal neovascularization in age-related macular degeneration with verteporfin: Two-year results of 2 randomized clinical trials-tap report 2. Archives of Ophthalmology119(2): 198–207. doi: 10-1001/pubs.Ophthalmol.
4.
BrownD. M.KaiserP. K.MichelsM.ANCHOR Study Group. (2006) Ranibizumab versus verteporfin for neovascular age-related macular degeneration. New England Journal of Medicine355(14): 1432–1444. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa062655.
5.
BunceC.WormaldR. (2008) Causes of blind certifications in England and Wales: April 1999–March 2000. Eye22: 905–911. doi: 10.1038/sj.eye.6702767.
6.
ChakravarthyU.WongT. Y.FletcherA.PiaultE.EvansC.ZlatevaG. (2010) Clinical risk factors for age-related macular degeneration: A systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Ophthalmology10: 31. doi: 10.1186/1471-2415-10-31.
7.
ChewE. Y.ClemonsT. E.AgronE.SperdutoR. D.SangiovanniJ. P.KuriniiN.DavisM. D. (2013) Long-term effects of vitamins C, E, beta-carotene and zinc on age-related macular degeneration. Ophthalmology120(8): 1604–1611. doi: 10.1016/j.ophtha.2013.01.021.
8.
ChongE. W.KreisA. J.WongT. Y.SimpsonJ. A.GuymerR. H. (2008) Dietary omega-3 fatty acid and fish intake in the primary prevention of age-related macular degeneration: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Archives of Ophthalmology126(6): 826–833. doi: 10.1001/archopht.126.6.826.
9.
ChopdarA.ChakravarthyU.VermaD. (2003) Age related macular degeneration. British Medical Journal326(7387): 485–488. doi: 10.1136/bmj.326.7387.485.
10.
KhanJ. C.ThurlbyD. A.ShahidH.ClaytonD. G.YatesJ. R.BradleyM.BirdA. C. (2006) Smoking and age-related macular degeneration: The number of pack years of cigarette smoking is a major determinant of risk for both geographic atrophy and choroidal neovascularization. British Journal of Ophthalmology90: 75–80. doi: 10.1136/bjo.2005.073643.
11.
Khaw, P. T, Shah, P., & Elkington, A. R. (2004). Age-related macular degeneration. In ABC of eyes, fourth edition. London, UK: BMJ Books..
12.
KleinR.ChouC. F.KleinB. E.ZhangX.MeuerS. M.SaaddineJ. B. (2011) Prevalence of age-related macular degeneration in the US population. Archives of Ophthalmology129(1): 75–80. doi: 10.1001/archophthalmol.2010.318.
13.
KleinR.KleinB. E.KnudtsonM. D.WongT. Y.CotchM. F.LiuK.JacobsD. R. (2006) Prevalence of age-related macular degeneration in 4 racial/ethnic groups in the multi-ethnic study of atherosclerosis. Ophthalmology113(3): 373–380. doi: 10.1016/j.ophtha.2005.12.013.
14.
MinassianD. C.ReidyA.LightstoneA.DesaiP. (2011) Modelling the prevalence of age-related macular degeneration (2010–2020) in the UK: Expected impact of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy. British Journal Ophthalmology95(10): 1433–1436. doi: 10.1136/bjo.2010.195370.
15.
NewsomR.SimonC. (2014) Can food supplements prevent blindness?InnovAiT7(12): 764–766. doi: 10.1177/1755738013511790.
16.
NICE. (2008). Ranibizumab and pegaptanib for the treatment of age-related macular degeneration. Retrieved from www.nice.org.uk/TA155.
RosenfeldP. J.BrownD. M.HeierJ. S.BoyerD. S. (2006) Ranibizumab for neovascular age related macular degeneration. New England Journal Medicine355(14): 1419–1431. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa054481.
19.
Royal College of Ophthalmologists. (2013). Age-related macular degeneration: Guidelines for management. Retrieved from www.rcophth.ac.uk/page.asp?section=451.
20.
SwaroopA.BranhamK. E.ChenW.AbecasisG. (2007) Genetic susceptibility to age-related macular degeneration: A paradigm for dissecting complex disease traits. Human Molecular Genetics16(R2): R174–R182. doi: 10.1093/hmg/ddm212.
