More than two-thirds of Americans aged 55+ had an eye exam in the last year to maintain their vision, yet 80 percent don’t know that age-related macular degeneration, or AMD, is a leading cause of vision loss in people over 60, according to a new national survey.As part of Macular Degeneration and Low Vision Awareness Month, our organization would like to share information that we found beneficial and informative. The survey, conducted by Opinion Research Corporation, also found that only 46 percent of respondents could correctly identify the risk factors for this serious, progressive eye disease and just half could identify any one symptom. Even more alarming is that of the 24 percent of people who are familiar with AMD, only 31 percent know that treatment options exist.
According to this survey and the article, approximately 15 million people in the United States have AMD, and more than 1.7 million Americans have the advanced form of the disease, known as wet AMD, which is more than cases of glaucoma and cataracts combined. About 200,000 new cases of wet AMD are diagnosed each year in North America. As a result of the aging Baby Boomer population, the National Eye Institute estimates that the prevalence of advanced AMD will grow to nearly 3 million by the end of the next decade.
What is AMD?
From our website: Macular degeneration is caused when part of the retina deteriorates. The retina is the interior layer of the eye. The macula is the central portion of the retina and is responsible for detailed vision.Age-related macular degeneration is the most common type of macular degeneration and is the leading cause of legal blindness in people older than 55 years in the United States. Age-related macular degeneration affects more than 9.1 million individuals in the United States. Owing to the rapid aging of the U.S. population, this number is expected to increase to almost 20 million by 2020. Because overall life expectancy continues to increase, age-related macular degeneration has become a major public health problem. To learn more about macular degeneration or our upcoming events, please visit us on the web at http://www.maculardegenerationassociation.org/ As always please consult your physician before beginning a new health regimen. Thank you for your continued support!
Resources: http://www.favstocks.com/boomers-vision-loss/2434523/
By: John Agno
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