What Is Medical Science Doing To Address the Problem of Macular Degeneration?
Microcurrent stimulation and the use of various supplements and antioxidant vitamins attempt to improve the function of the cells in the retina that are responsible for vision, and to improve the poor blood flow that are the problems at the core of macular degeneration and other diseases of the retina. The main tool that the ophthalmologist has to deal with the problem of macular degeneration is the laser. The feared complication in macular degeneration is bleeding in the retina. About 10% to 20% of people with macular degeneration will at some time during the course of their disease develop bleeding or leakage of fluid in the retina. The ophthalmologist can put a fluorescent dye into a vein, look into the eye and see where blood and fluid are leaking out and burn this area with a coagulating laser with sufficient power to cause a full thickness burn in the retina. This is analogous to using a hot poker to burn a bleeding vessel in a wound on your body. It’s crude, but it works. Bleedi
