Macular degeneration is a condition that damages the macula, the central part of the retina, which is the part of the eye that is responsible for central vision and the ability to see detail.
It is the general term used to describe a number of diseases of the retina. Of these, age-related macular degeneration is the most common, largely affecting people over 60.
With macular degeneration, a spot may appear in your central vision. As it progresses, print may appear distorted, and part of words may be missing altogether. According to the World Health Organisation, more than 161 million people were visually impaired in 2002. More than 90 per cent of the world’s visually impaired live in developing countries, with cataract ranked as the leading cause of blindness in all regions of the world – apart from the most developed countries. Glaucoma is the second leading cause, and age-related macular degeneration is ranked third. According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), a growing number of the world’s children are mildly to severely nearsighted (myopic), with rates especially high among urbanised East Asians.
As well as coping with poor distance vision, children with severe myopia are more prone to visual impairment and blindness later in life.
Genetic inheritance plays a role but the rapid rise of myopia suggests that environmental factors are driving the trend, says the AAO, which is the world’s largest association of eye physicians and surgeons, with more than 27,000 members worldwide.