Published: 03 February 2021

Here are some treatment options for Dry and Wet Age Related Macular Degeneration. Nutritional supplements and Dry Age Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) The Age-Related Eye Disease Study 2 (AREDS2) showed that people at high risk of developing advanced stages of AMD benefited from taking dietary supplements. Supplements lowered the risk of macular degeneration progression by 25 percent. These supplements did not benefit people with early AMD or people without AMD. Following is the supplementation: Vitamin C - 500 mg Vitamin E - 400 IU Lutein – 10 mg Zeaxanthin – 2 mg Zinc Oxide – 80 mg Copper – 2 mg (to prevent copper deficiency that may be associated with taking high amount of zinc) Another study showed a benefit in eating dark leafy greens and yellow, orange and other fruits and vegetables. These vitamins and minerals listed above are recommended in addition to a healthy, balanced diet. It is important to remember that vitamin supplements are not a cure for AMD, nor will they restore vision. However, these supplements may help some people maintain their vision or slow the progression of the disease. Wet AMD treatments The most common treatment for wet AMD is an eye injection of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF). This treatment blocks the growth of abnormal blood vessels, slows their leakage of fluid, may help slow vision loss, and in some cases can improve vision. There are multiple anti-VEGF drugs available: Avastin, Lucentis, and Eylea. You may need monthly injections for a prolonged period of time for treatment of wet AMD. Laser Treatment for Wet AMD Some cases of wet AMD may benefit from thermal laser. This laser destroys the abnormal blood vessels in the eye to prevent leakage and bleeding in the retina. A scar forms where the laser is applied and may cause a blind spot that might be noticeable in your field of vision. Photodynamic Therapy or PDT Some patients with wet AMD might benefit from photodynamic therapy (PDT). A medication called Visudyne is injected into your arm and the drug is activated as it passes through the retina by shining a low-energy laser beam into your eye. Once the drug is activated by the light it produces a chemical reaction that destroys abnormal blood vessels in the retina. Sometimes a combination of laser treatments and injections of anti-VEGF mediations are employed to treat wet AMD. Article contributed by Jane Pan M.D.

Published: 26 January 2021

Just like adults, children need to have their eyes examined. This need begins at birth and continues through adulthood. Following are common recommendations for when a child needs to be screened, and what is looked for at each stage. A child’s first eye exam should be done either right at or shortly after birth. This is especially true for children who were born prematurely and have a very low birth weight and may need to be given oxygen. This is mainly done to screen for a disease of the retina called retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), in which the retina does not develop properly as a result of the child receiving high levels of oxygen. Although rarer today due to the levels being monitored more closely, it is still a concern for premature babies. The next time an eye exam is in order is around 6 months. At this stage, your pediatric eye doctor will check your child’s basic visual abilities by making them look at lights, respond to colors, and be able to follow a moving object. Your child’s ocular alignment will also be measured to ensure that he or she does not have strabismus, a constant inward or outward turning of one or both eyes. Parents are encouraged to look for these symptoms at home because swift intervention with surgery to align the eyes at this stage is crucial for their ocular and visual development. It is also imperative for parents and medical professionals to be on the lookout for retinoblastoma, a rare cancer of the eye that more commonly affects young children than adults. At home, this might show up in a photo taken with a flash, where the reflection in the pupil is white rather than red. Other symptoms can include eye pain, eyes not moving in the same direction, pupils always being wide open, and irises of different colors. While these symptoms can be caused by other things, having a doctor check them immediately is important because early treatment can save your child’s sight, but advanced cases can lead to vision loss and possibly death if the cancer spreads. After the 6-month exam, I usually recommend another exam around age 5, then yearly afterward. There are several reasons for this gap. First, any parent with a 2- to 4-year-old knows that it’s difficult for them to sit still for anything, let alone an eye exam. Trying to examine this young of a patient can be frustrating for the doctor, the parent, and the child. Nobody wins. By age 5, children are typically able to respond to questions and can (usually) concentrate on the task at hand. If necessary at this stage, their eyes will be measured for a prescription for glasses and checked for amblyopia, commonly known as a “lazy eye”. Detected early enough, amblyopia can be treated properly under close observation by the eye doctor. The recommendations listed above are solely one doctor’s opinion of when children should have eye exams. The various medical bodies in pediatrics, ophthalmology, and optometry have different guidelines regarding exam frequency, but agree that while it is not essential that a healthy child’s eyes be examined every year, those with a personal or family history of inheritable eye disease should be followed more closely. Article contributed by Dr. Jonathan Gerard