Macular Degeneration: The 15 Best Treatments You Should Know

As one of the most common eye disorders, macular degeneration affects most people over 50. It can cause issues with the direct line of sight, and though it doesn’t affect peripheral vision, it could eventually progress into something more severe with time. There are two types of macular degeneration, wet and dry. Dry macular degeneration occurs first, typically suddenly, and progresses, making it more challenging to identify faces due to blurred vision in the direct line of sight. However, given enough time and without proper treatment, macular degeneration can eventually turn into the wet variant, which is more severe. At this point, a blood vessel leaks blood or fluids into the macula, further deteriorating vision.

Learning the causes of macular degeneration can be difficult, as it is challenging to pinpoint any exact causes. Many different risk factors, including age, genetics, and more, can help physicians figure out the best course of action. Macular degeneration treatment can vary and depends on many different lifestyle choices. We’ll look into the most popular forms of macular degeneration treatment and how they can help sufferers slow the disorder’s progression.

Anti-VEGF Injections

The use of anti-VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factors) medication is to help slow the growth of blood vessels in the affected eye. The point of such medication is to ensure that macular degeneration does not progress from the dry to the wet variant, where the blood vessels leak fluid into the macula and cause bigger issues. It’s one of the few forms of treatment that’s less of a lifestyle choice and more of a move to help ensure your eyes stay healthier for longer. The problem with wet macular degeneration is it can cause plenty of issues once the disorder progresses, causing vision loss far quicker than dry macular degeneration. It’s a good idea to speak with your doctor and check your eyes to see if anti-VEGF medications are the best route.

As far as the effects of anti-VEGF medication, it’s been known to halt the progress of macular degeneration for a vast majority of sufferers. Aside from that, there is also a small chance that anti-VEGF injections can successfully reverse some of the vision loss. Overall, it’s an extremely effective treatment that can help those suffering from macular degeneration.