Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) rarely causes symptoms in its early stages, so annual eye exams that assess changes in the retina and macula are crucial for diagnosing the disease and beginning treatment at the most beneficial time. .
Your eye doctor may conduct one or more of the following tests to determine whether you have AMD:
Amsler grid test
A grid of straight lines with a huge dot in the center is known as an Amsler grid. Your doctor may ask you to point out any lines or areas of the grid that appear blurry, wavy, or broken. Some of the straight lines in the grid may appear faded, fractured or deformed due to macular degeneration.
Dilated eye exam
Your eye doctor will dilate your eyes with drops and inspect the back of your eye with a range of devices. The doctor will search for drusen, which are yellow deposits that grow beneath the retina and create a speckled appearance. Drusen are common in people with macular degeneration. Other retinal irregularities the eye doctor looks for include changes to the pigment of the macula, abnormal blood vessels and fluid leakage.
Fluorescein angiography
A colorful dye injected into a vein in your arm flows to your eye's blood vessels, highlighting the blood flow within the vessels. As the dye flows through the blood vessels, a unique camera takes numerous photos. These images will reveal any retinal abnormalities or abnormal blood vessels, which may be signs of wet macular degeneration.
Indocyanine green angiography
This test, like fluorescein angiography, employs an injected dye. It can be used in conjunction with fluorescein angiography to pinpoint the type of macular degeneration.
Optical coherence tomography (OCT)
This noninvasive imaging examination produces detailed 3D retinal cross-sectional pictures. It detects thinning, thickening or swelling of the retina. Leaking blood vessels in and under your retina can cause fluid to accumulate.
Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA)
The OCT scanning equipment uses laser light reflection (rather than fluorescein dye). Within just a few minutes your eye doctor can see 3D photos of blood flow inside the eye.
Schedule an eye exam with Child & Family Eye Care in , Magnolia, and Shenandoah, to check for macular degeneration.
Q&A
What is macular degeneration?
Macular degeneration (also known as age-related macular degeneration,or AMD) is a condition in which the macula of the eye breaks down, resulting in a loss of central vision. Vision loss due to dry AMD is gradual, but sudden in cases of wet AMD.
Is macular degeneration curable?
No. However, treatment can reduce or even stop wet-AMD from progressing, so the sooner you get diagnosed, the better.