Over a million French people lived in silence in a troubled world. The magic of advertising, their disease has found a name, AMD, but also listening and the start of effective treatment. What is more, a study shows that the number of sick people is decreasing.
A very recent study published in the journal JAMA Ophthalmology shows that the number of patients decreases between each generation, at least for all those born in 20e century. It is roughly the reverse in most other major illnesses. For these doctors, there is only one explanation: for once, the modern environment – clearly more cleanliness – had an extremely positive effect on our eyes.
A strong identity
The economic fights between pharmaceutical companies against a background of controversy sometimes also have a positive effect: the communication campaigns they finance have taken this disease out of its anonymity. AMD It is the abbreviation of a nasty eye disease: “Age-Related Macular Degeneration”. As the name suggests, 12% of people over 60 and one in four people after 75 are affected. It starts with a feeling of bad lighting. Nothing very worrying, especially at the beginning, that only one eye is affected. But, a few months after this first symptom, when we look at the door of the house, we see the frame waving; just like the grid of a notebook, the lines of the journal or the landscape in the car. This feeling of wavy straight lines affects only the center of the eye. The lateral view is preserved: thus, looking at a face, we absolutely cannot distinguish its features, while everything around it is particularly clear. The part of the eye that degenerates is called the macula. This is the name of the center of the retina. In AMD, our camera is intact but the center of the film is destroyed … Little is known about the causes: too frequent exposure to the sun, smoking, hypertension, clear eyes seem to be more frequent in these patients, but nothing very obvious.
Know the symptoms well to talk about them
If your doctor does not always check for AMD, recognize the symptoms and talk to him about it. Because early detection is the only way to apply treatments that only work at the start of the disease, slowing its worsening. In the absence of treatment, nothing very encouraging. There is no turning back, the disease remaining stable or worsening gradually with sometimes a sudden attack. Little by little, isolation, depression and its often dramatic consequences emerge.
In terms of processing, it was for a long time the desert; one more reason not to talk about it … But we can say today that for 15% of patients, the laser slows down the destruction of the center of the retina. Rehabilitation – to make the best use of peripheral vision – very magnifying glasses are very valuable. However, with new techniques such as phototherapy, it seems that medicine has decided to tackle this public health problem head on.
There are also these new drugs but which only work on 30% of AMD that we say “wet” because due to the uncontrolled formation of small blood vessels that bleed. These treatments slow down the formation of these “neo vessels”. They are only of interest if they can be used quickly… Early detection becomes fundamental. It is necessary to consult at the slightest doubt in front of a distortion of the vision of the straight lines and not to hesitate to request an appointment urgently.
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