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Treatments And Medications For Macular Degeneration

by — Last updated: 2018-03-27 in Eye Disorders and Diseases

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Explore how researchers have linked calcium deposits in the eye to a possible cause of age-related macular degeneration.

There are no treatments that can reverse macular degeneration. However, this does not mean someone will always lose their eyesight. Dry macular degeneration usually begins slowly and many people with the disease can lead a productive, normal quality of life particularly if only one eye is affected. A doctor may recommend yearly eye examinations to monitor how the condition is progressing.

According to the National Eye Institute, some people take high-dose formulations of antioxidant vitamins and zinc in order to reduce the progression of the disease. In research from the organization, people can use the following formulations; 500 mg of vitamin C, 400 IU of vitamin E, 15 mg of beta carotene, 80 mg of zinc and 2 mg of copper.

You should consult with your physician to determine if this formulation could be helpful to you and may help reduce your risks of vision loss.

Surgery

A diverse array of surgical treatment options are being investigated for exudative age-related macular degeneration, if the patient does not qualify for laser surgery. These procedures include; macular translocation to a healthier area of the eye, displacement of submacular blood using gas and surgical removal of the membranes. In the Submacular Surgical Trial that was published in 2004, it was found that surgery for hemorrhagic choroidal neovascular lesions did not increase the changes of stabilization, nor did it improve the quality of a patient’s vision, but it did reduce the risk of severe vision loss.

Calcium Deposits

According to new researcher from the University of Maryland, School of Medicine, scientists have discovered tiny deposits of calcium phosphate could be responsible for triggering macular degeneration. For the very first time, these mineral deposits have been directly linked to the disease that affects millions and millions of Americans.

Richard Thompson, PhD, and Imre Lengyel, PhD, and a research team of international scientists studied retinal samples from a group of elderly patients and some had AMD. They found the AMD samples contained tiny lumps or spherules of calcium phosphate known as hydroxyapatite or HAP. This is common in the body and makes up the bones and teeth, but never before had it been witnessed in the eyes.

AMD starts and develops gradually over decades, with the building up of fatty protein deposits in the retina that results in damaging the flow of nutrients into the eye. Scientists have known about the deposits for more than a decade, but where they came from remained a mystery.

Due to the findings of the study, researchers feel that tiny deposits of hydroxyapatite build up over the years and form a substance called drusen. It is thought these proteins will prevent nutrients from reaching the eyes light sensitive cells known as “photoreceptors.” These photoreceptors are regularly recycled through cellular methods. However, drusen formation traps proteins inside the retina and makes the buildup worse. Until this study was performed, nobody could really understand how drusen formed and became clinically relevant.

See Also: What Your Doctor Probably Won't Tell You About Glaucoma

Dr Thompson feels the discovery of these calcium deposits opens up new avenues of research into diagnostics and treatments for macular degeneration, but the journey is still going to be long and arduous.