Macular Degeneration
New Treatments for a Challenging Eye Disease

Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) affects 10 million people in this country. It is the leading cause of vision loss among people over the age of 60. AMD affects the central retina (i.e. the “macula”, which is like the film in a camera) with devastating results on the vision. There are two types of AMD: “wet” and “dry”. In dry AMD there is deterioration of the retina without bleeding, and in wet AMD, abnormal blood vessels grow beneath the retina and this leads to bleeding and severe loss of central vision.

The cause of AMD is probably mostly due to our genes. Poor diet, smoking, and exposure to sun light also play a part. . We advise patients to wear protective sunglasses and to monitor their vision. We also recommend multivitamins to everyone. A special blend of higher dose vitamins is now available for patients with high-risk characteristics. Yet, people can still progress to severe vision loss from bleeding in the retina.

For retina specialists, macular degeneration has always been a challenging disease. Not too long ago, we could only laser the retina, which would leave a scar, but was still better than doing nothing. With the availability of new drugs for AMD, we have entered a new era in the treatment of this blinding disease:

Photodynamic Therapy (“cold laser”) using a photo-sensitive drug, Visudyne, has been in use at Bloomberg Eye Center since 2001. We were involved in the national clinical investigations of Visudyne prior to its FDA approval.

Macugen was the first in a new class of drugs given in our office that suppress abnormal blood vessel growth in the retina and stabilize vision.

Avastin, approved for treatment of colorectal cancer, has found an off-lable use in the treatment of AMD at a much lower cost. This is especially attractive for people with no health insurance, who cannot otherwise afford treatment.

Lucentis represents the most recent breakthrough in the fight against wet AMD. Studies have shown that patients receiving monthly intraocular injections of Lucentis may actually gain vision and maintain that over time.

I still tell my patients undergoing these treatments, that our goal is to prevent further vision loss, but we have seen many cases where the vision actually improves following early diagnosis and treatment. This is truly remarkable in the context of this challenging eye disease.

“Retinal specialty services at Bloomberg Eye Center include treatment of macular degeneration, retinal detachments, and advanced diabetic eye care. We are the only center outside of Columbus offering medical and surgical treatment of retinal diseases”
Shahin Shahinfar, M.D., Retinal Diseases and Surgery