Dr. Diva Kant Misra

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a common condition that affects the middle part of your vision. It usually first affects people in their 50s and 60s.

It does not cause total blindness. But it can make everyday activities like reading and recognising faces difficult.

Without treatment, your vision may get worse. This can happen gradually over several years (“dry AMD”), or quickly over a few weeks or months (“wet AMD”).

The exact cause is unknown. It’s been linked to smoking, high blood pressure, being overweight and having a family history of AMD.

Treatment depends on the type of AMD you have.

• Dry AMD – there’s no treatment, but vision aids can help reduce the effect on your life. Read about living with AMD.
• Wet AMD – you may need regular eye injections and, very occasionally, a light treatment called photodynamic therapy, to stop your vision getting worse.

Eye injections

Anti-VEGF medicines – ranibizumab (Lucentis), aflibercept (Eylea) and brolucizumab (Beovu)

Injections given directly into the eyes:

• stops vision getting worse in 9 out of 10 people and improves vision in 3 out of 10 people
• usually given every 1, 2 or 3 months for as long as necessary
• drops numb the eyes before treatment – most people have minimal discomfort
• side effects include bleeding in the eye, feeling like there’s something in the eye, and redness and irritation of the eye

Light treatment

Photodynamic therapy (PDT)

A light is shined at the back of the eyes to destroy the abnormal blood vessels that cause wet AMD:

• may be recommended alongside eye injections if injections alone do not help
• usually needs to be repeated every few months
• side effects include temporary vision problems, and the eyes and skin being sensitive to light for a few days or weeks