* . *
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact
Friday, August 8, 2025
Earth-News
  • Home
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    Themed Entertainment Design – Purdue Polytechnic

    Innovative Themed Entertainment Design: Creating Immersive Experiences

    Rachael Leigh Cook and Brandon Routh ‘Happy to Have Found Each Other’ Following Respective Divorces – yahoo.com

    Rachael Leigh Cook and Brandon Routh ‘Happy to Have Found Each Other’ Following Respective Divorces – yahoo.com

    ‘Billie Jean’ – Hyde Park Herald

    The Enduring Magic Behind ‘Billie Jean’ Revealed

    Hank Hill returns to a changed world in new ‘King of the Hill’ episodes – New Haven Register

    Hank Hill Navigates a Bold New World in Thrilling New ‘King of the Hill’ Episodes

    Exclusive | Fox Takes Stake in IndyCar Owner Penske Entertainment – The Wall Street Journal

    Exclusive | Fox Takes Stake in IndyCar Owner Penske Entertainment – The Wall Street Journal

    Go-to entertainment: why gaming was made for the toilet – The Guardian

    Why Gaming Is the Ultimate Way to Pass Time in the Bathroom

  • General
  • Health
  • News

    Cracking the Code: Why China’s Economic Challenges Aren’t Shaking Markets, Unlike America’s” – Bloomberg

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Science
  • Sports
  • Technology
    BlackSky Technology Inc. (BKSY) Reports Q2 Loss, Lags Revenue Estimates – Yahoo Finance

    BlackSky Technology Inc. Reports Q2 Loss, Misses Revenue Targets

    Improved Technology Access: A Key to Closing the Healthcare Gap for African Americans – BIOENGINEER.ORG

    LMI Expands Technology Org, Appoints New Leaders – GovCon Wire

    LMI Expands Technology Team with Dynamic New Leadership Appointments

    Midland Innovation and Technology Charter School closing down – CBS News

    Midland Innovation and Technology Charter School Closes Permanently

    Future Trends In HR Technology – Dataconomy

    Future Trends In HR Technology – Dataconomy

    Nasdaq-listed Verb Technology to build $558 million TON treasury, rebrand as TON Strategy Co. – The Block

    Nasdaq-Listed Verb Technology to Build $558 Million TON Treasury and Rebrand as TON Strategy Co

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    Themed Entertainment Design – Purdue Polytechnic

    Innovative Themed Entertainment Design: Creating Immersive Experiences

    Rachael Leigh Cook and Brandon Routh ‘Happy to Have Found Each Other’ Following Respective Divorces – yahoo.com

    Rachael Leigh Cook and Brandon Routh ‘Happy to Have Found Each Other’ Following Respective Divorces – yahoo.com

    ‘Billie Jean’ – Hyde Park Herald

    The Enduring Magic Behind ‘Billie Jean’ Revealed

    Hank Hill returns to a changed world in new ‘King of the Hill’ episodes – New Haven Register

    Hank Hill Navigates a Bold New World in Thrilling New ‘King of the Hill’ Episodes

    Exclusive | Fox Takes Stake in IndyCar Owner Penske Entertainment – The Wall Street Journal

    Exclusive | Fox Takes Stake in IndyCar Owner Penske Entertainment – The Wall Street Journal

    Go-to entertainment: why gaming was made for the toilet – The Guardian

    Why Gaming Is the Ultimate Way to Pass Time in the Bathroom

  • General
  • Health
  • News

    Cracking the Code: Why China’s Economic Challenges Aren’t Shaking Markets, Unlike America’s” – Bloomberg

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Science
  • Sports
  • Technology
    BlackSky Technology Inc. (BKSY) Reports Q2 Loss, Lags Revenue Estimates – Yahoo Finance

    BlackSky Technology Inc. Reports Q2 Loss, Misses Revenue Targets

    Improved Technology Access: A Key to Closing the Healthcare Gap for African Americans – BIOENGINEER.ORG

    LMI Expands Technology Org, Appoints New Leaders – GovCon Wire

    LMI Expands Technology Team with Dynamic New Leadership Appointments

    Midland Innovation and Technology Charter School closing down – CBS News

    Midland Innovation and Technology Charter School Closes Permanently

    Future Trends In HR Technology – Dataconomy

    Future Trends In HR Technology – Dataconomy

    Nasdaq-listed Verb Technology to build $558 million TON treasury, rebrand as TON Strategy Co. – The Block

    Nasdaq-Listed Verb Technology to Build $558 Million TON Treasury and Rebrand as TON Strategy Co

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
No Result
View All Result
Earth-News
No Result
View All Result
Home Health

Age-Related Macular Degeneration: Putting a Hole in Our World

May 11, 2024
in Health
Age-Related Macular Degeneration: Putting a Hole in Our World
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

May 10, 2024 – When we’re young, we take our macula for granted. At the center of our retina – the deepest layer of the eye that’s chock-full of photoreceptors and that confers color to our world – the macula is like a high-resolution camera. As light hits our eyes, the retina’s macula recasts our world in a bloom of color with astoundingly high visual sharpness.

But as you age, your vision dulls. What once stood out sharply becomes foggy, like condensation on a windowpane. After some time, a coal-black smudge or cloudy circular area begins to affect your central vision. 

This effective blind spot widens over time if left untreated. What remains is a “macular hole” in the center of your retina.

This unfortunate series of events marks the advanced stage of age-related macular degeneration, a dangerous retinal disease that affects about 20 million people in the U.S., and nearly 200 million people worldwide. 

And it’s not getting better. Estimates are that by 2040, the disease may affect nearly 300 million people worldwide. We are very limited in our ability to treat or prevent it. Read on for what to know. 

First, What Causes Age-Related Macular Degeneration? 

AMD’s causes are varied, and whether it will affect you is mostly determined by age and genetics, said Marco Alejandro Gonzalez, MD, an ophthalmologist and vitreoretinal specialist in Delray Beach, FL. 

Because of the different cocktails that we have in terms of our genetic makeup, some people’s photoreceptor cells in the macula “basically start to shut down,” he said.

AMD’s development involves over 30 genes, and if you have a first-degree relative – parent, sibling, child – who has the disease, you’re three times more likely to get it, too. 

Gonzalez explained how the expected rise to 300 million cases by 2040 is due mostly to improved diagnostic tools, along with the fact that the world is getting older and living longer. (Usually, an optometrist can detect signs of AMD during a routine eye exam.)  

Eye experts still struggle to stop AMD’s most harmful sign – the cause of those muddy, milky, or even coal-colored circles in your central vision: geographic atrophy.

Geographic atrophy can occur in either of the two forms of age-related AMD: “dry” AMD and “wet” AMD.

Nearly every case of AMD begins as the dry kind, affecting 80% to 90% of AMD patients. 

Retinal disease expert Tiarnán Keenan, MD, PhD, offered  a vivid image of geographic atrophy for those who have dry AMD. 

“As time passes, the circular patches of GA expand like a brushfire, taking more and more vision with it, often to the point of legal blindness,” he said. 

A researcher in the Division of Epidemiology and Clinical Applications at the National Eye Institute, Keenan recently led a study that tested the efficacy of the antibiotic minocycline in slowing geographic atrophy expansion in dry AMD. The study operated on the grounds that the body’s immune system could be at play in developing the disease.

When your body’s immune system is overactive, microglial cells (central nervous system immune cells) can get into the sub-retinal space and possibly eat away at the macula and its sensitive photoreceptors. 

Though minocycline had been shown to reduce inflammation and microglial activity in the eye in diabetic retinopathy, it didn’t slow the expansion of geographic atrophy or vision loss in patients with dry AMD during Keenan’s study.

When asked if microglial activity could have very little to do with the atrophy expansion, Keenan said it’s something to consider: “Maybe microglia are just there as bystanders clearing up the debris … so inhibiting them is less likely to slow down progression.”

In future drug trials, “maybe it’s possible the minocycline or another approach to target microglia would be helpful, but it would be needed in combination with some other therapy and be ineffective by itself,” he said. 

Two Sides of the Same Disease 

In dry AMD, Gonzalez compares macular degeneration to the loss of pixels on a screen. “Some of those pixels burn out … and that’s the way you lose vision classically in the dry form.”

Wet AMD is a more progressive form of the disease. It causes abrupt vision loss due to abnormal blood vessel growth. 

“If you don’t treat wet AMD quickly, it’s game over,” warned Gonzalez. “Wet macular degeneration is the quicker process of vision loss because these blood vessels wreak havoc.” These new blood vessels bleed, causing fluid to build in the macula, which ultimately leads to scarring. 

Gonzalez shed light on why wet AMD develops. “The wet form, for some reason, is the body’s last-ditch effort to try to kind of ‘help’ a dying macula. … When these blood vessels start to grow under the retina, they quickly destroy the architecture of the macula.”

Stopping the Bleeding in Wet AMD

Though wet AMD is rarer, it’s more treatable than dry AMD. Signs and symptoms can be eased with various therapies injected into the eye. 

Putting it simply, Gonzalez said these therapies to treat wet AMD “all basically do the same thing. They make these new blood vessels regress temporarily before they cause damage to the macula.”

The injected medication clears away those blood vessels and restores the architecture of the macula. People can recover some vision in this way, but it’s only a temporary tune-up, and shots must be given as often as once a month.

“Degeneration of the cells is still the main problem. You’re not stopping that. But degeneration itself is a lot slower than actual vision loss associated with these blood vessels.” 

The Struggle in Developing New Treatments 

According to Keenan, “nobody has been able to stop geographic atrophy from happening” in either form of AMD. “So, that’s the main work in the field with trials.”

In December 2023, the FDA approved two new drugs: Syfovre and Izervay, both of which only slow geographic atrophy. Degeneration still happens, regardless. 

Keenan explained how these two new drugs are “complement inhibitors … given by injection into the eye once a month or so.” 

“Complement” refers to the body’s complement pathway, a trigger that activates a cascade of proteins in enhancing immune response. 

Clinical trials showed Syfovre slowing the rate of geographic atrophy by up to 22% over 2 years, and Izervay up to 14% over 1 year. 

Though these drugs are a new weapon against this troublesome affliction, they aren’t without their complications. 

“Anytime you give an injection in the eye, there’s always the risk of an infection because you’re introducing something from the outside. So that’s the biggest risk,” explained Gonzalez. 

An infection is uncommon, but potentially devastating, as you can lose your eye altogether. There’s also the chance of a damaging reaction to the shot.

“You have to pick and choose your patients,” said Gonzalez. “Not everybody is a good candidate for those new shots … and the patient is never going to see better. … It’s a harder sell than the ones for wet AMD.”

A Common Protective Measure 

Keenan and Gonzalez both have a fair degree of confidence in reducing the risk of AMD with vitamin therapy. 

As a bit of background on how vitamins were found to act as a sort of preventive measure, Gonzalez said, “In the early and late ‘90s, there were series of studies which were called the age-related eye disease studies.” These are now referred to as AREDS 1 and AREDS 2.

Researchers proved that a certain cocktail of vitamins slowed down degeneration. The most is a combo of antioxidants: vitamins C and E and lutein and zeaxanthin, all of which are in the AREDS 2 formula.

People who took these vitamins had a lower chance of losing their vision over the next 2 to 5 years. “[The combo] seems to be complementary and additive … with a combined treatment effect of 55% to 60%, an excellent safety record, and very low cost,” Keenan said. 

Gonzalez recommends the AREDS 2 formula of vitamins to every patient of his. “It’s such an easy thing to take, and the downside is minimal.”

Unfortunately, if your genes make you more likely to have the condition, a change in diet or vitamin use could have no effect. 

Dire? Possibly. But not all is lost in this fight. 

Vigilance with AMD and What to Do Next if You’re Diagnosed

Gonzalez is adamant in educating his patients before time has run out on treating AMD. Recognition is key. “The most common reason a lot of these people get to me ‘too late’ is they don’t realize there’s a problem.”

He explained a typical scenario: “Let’s say you have macular degeneration in both eyes at different stages. One of your eyes starts developing wet macular degeneration … so the better eye takes over and you may not notice there’s a problem.” 

Even after a patient is diagnosed with AMD, they usually see a specialist only twice a year. Gonzalez often tells his patients to cover one of their eyes to make sure their vision is intact in both eyes. “You’ll be able to pick up on subtle differences” in each eye, he said. 

This type of self-care and vigilance can be the difference between successfully living with and treating the disease for the rest of your life, and trying to get help when it’s simply too late. 

For wet AMD, as mentioned before, a round of injections is basically what everyone does. Without quick, invasive treatment, the point of no return approaches rapidly. 

>>> Read full article>>>
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source : WebMD – https://www.webmd.com/eye-health/news/20240510/age-related-macular-degeneration-putting-hole-our-world?src=RSS_PUBLIC

Tags: age-relatedhealthMacular
Previous Post

Study links organization of neurotypical brains to genes involved in autism and schizophrenia

Next Post

Cows Are Potential Spreaders of Bird Flu to Humans

Trailer: Netflix Animation Welcomes Viewers to the Whimsical World of Dr. Seuss! – Animation Magazine

Trailer Unveils the Whimsical World of Dr. Seuss in Netflix Animation!

August 8, 2025
Spending on AI data centers is so massive that it’s taken a bigger chunk of GDP growth than shopping—and it could crash the American economy – Fortune

Spending on AI data centers is so massive that it’s taken a bigger chunk of GDP growth than shopping—and it could crash the American economy – Fortune

August 8, 2025
SPC Health Programs Showcase: Featuring Nursing, Radiography, and Surgical Services Degrees – St. Petersburg College

Explore Exciting Career Paths in Nursing, Radiography, and Surgical Services at SPC Health Programs Showcase

August 8, 2025
Top Trump officials discussed Epstein at White House meeting Wednesday night – CNN

Top Trump officials discussed Epstein at White House meeting Wednesday night – CNN

August 8, 2025
A quilt-themed exhibit is coming to NYC’s American Folk Art Museum this fall – Time Out Worldwide

Discover the Magic of Quilts: Don’t Miss This Captivating NYC Exhibit This Fall!

August 7, 2025
Maximizing pasture potential, the science behind multi-species grazing – Beef Magazine

Unlock the Full Potential of Your Pasture with Science-Backed Multi-Species Grazing Strategies

August 7, 2025
The Council for Responsible Nutrition announces Science in Session theme and lineup – Nutritional Outlook

Council for Responsible Nutrition Reveals Thrilling Science in Session Theme and Speaker Lineup

August 7, 2025
Alibaba Upgrades Taobao Lifestyle Experience with New Cross-platform Loyalty Program – Alizila

Alibaba Upgrades Taobao Lifestyle Experience with New Cross-platform Loyalty Program – Alizila

August 7, 2025
BlackSky Technology Inc. (BKSY) Reports Q2 Loss, Lags Revenue Estimates – Yahoo Finance

BlackSky Technology Inc. Reports Q2 Loss, Misses Revenue Targets

August 7, 2025
Sports card industry leaders on what’s working and why trust needs to be improved – The New York Times

Sports card industry leaders on what’s working and why trust needs to be improved – The New York Times

August 7, 2025

Categories

Archives

August 2025
MTWTFSS
 123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
25262728293031
« Jul    
Earth-News.info

The Earth News is an independent English-language daily published Website from all around the World News

Browse by Category

  • Business (20,132)
  • Ecology (759)
  • Economy (783)
  • Entertainment (21,659)
  • General (16,341)
  • Health (9,822)
  • Lifestyle (792)
  • News (22,149)
  • People (783)
  • Politics (792)
  • Science (15,995)
  • Sports (21,279)
  • Technology (15,762)
  • World (765)

Recent News

Trailer: Netflix Animation Welcomes Viewers to the Whimsical World of Dr. Seuss! – Animation Magazine

Trailer Unveils the Whimsical World of Dr. Seuss in Netflix Animation!

August 8, 2025
Spending on AI data centers is so massive that it’s taken a bigger chunk of GDP growth than shopping—and it could crash the American economy – Fortune

Spending on AI data centers is so massive that it’s taken a bigger chunk of GDP growth than shopping—and it could crash the American economy – Fortune

August 8, 2025
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact

© 2023 earth-news.info

No Result
View All Result

© 2023 earth-news.info

No Result
View All Result

© 2023 earth-news.info

Go to mobile version