What causes Macular Degeneration (MD)?
There are two types of macular degeneration, wet and dry. Dry MD is the most common. It is caused by the aging and thinning of blood vessels under the macula which results in mild, yet gradually occurring loss of vision that is especially noticeable during activities such as reading. Dry MD accounts for about 80% of all macular degeneration cases, but leads to only 20% of cases in which there is a severe loss of vision. Wet MD is less frequent but accounts for the majority of cases with severe vision loss. It is significantly more aggressive in nature and is caused by an abnormal growth of new blood vessels that leak blood and other fluids. Wet MD disrupts the central viewing function of the macula resulting in visual distortion and eventually the loss of central vision entirely.
