FEBRUARY IS NATIONAL AMD/LOW VISION AWARENESS MONTH

PRESS RELEASES   2/1/2024

The month of February is National AMD/Low Vision Awareness Month. In order to understand the seriousness and importance of this awareness please do the following: Take your left hand and cover your left eye, now make a fist with your right hand. Take your right fist and place it directly in front of your right eye. The only thing you should see is images in your periphery or side vision. Now imagine that this is how you are to function within the world. More than 15 million Americans are affected by AMD and it is the leading cause of visual impairment and legal blindness among people 50 years and older. It progresses painlessly leaving many AMD patients unaware that they have the disease. Age-Related Macular Degeneration primarily destroys the sharp central vision controlled by a spot at the back of the retina called the macula. Sharp central vision is needed to read, drive, identify faces, watch television and perform daily tasks that require straight ahead vision. AMD does not affect the peripheral vision and will never lead to complete blindness. Degeneration often starts in one eye and progresses into the other eye over some years. There are two forms of AMD-Wet (neovascular) and Dry (atrophic). Dry AMD occurs in 90% of all cases and is the result of thinning retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) and can affect color perception. The wet form affects only 10% of AMD cases and is the more severe of the two. It occurs when delicate abnormal blood vessels form under the retina and begin to leak fluid and blood, causing scarring that leads to loss of sharp vision. Although there are no accepted forms of treatment for Dry AMD, Wet AMD has seen the most progress with more options and medications being developed and researched on a continuous basis. For more information or to make an appointment with Medical Center Clinic’s eye Institute, please call 850.474.8436 to set up your appointment. Information provided by: https://www.nei.nih.gov/learn-about-eye-health/resources-for-health-educators/low-vision-resources/low-vision-awareness-month