“What causes retinal disorders in a person?”
My mother has been diagnosed with a retinal disorder called macular degeneration. Her eye doctor says that this might cause her to be blind. What causes this disease to develop?
9 Answers
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Jason Randall Smith
Optometrist
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Here is a good website on macular degeneration.
aging, smoking, UV light exposure, diet, treatments, vision loss, and risk factors.
Here is a good website on macular degeneration.
aging, smoking, UV light exposure, diet, treatments, vision loss, and risk factors.
Macular degeneration can be genetic and/or environmental. You can decrease your risk by wearing UV protection outdoors, eating a healthy diet full of dark leafy greens and fresh fruits and vegetables, and avoiding smoking.
Macular degeneration can be hereditary but also is higher risk in smokers and exposure to UV. It is usually treated by a supplement recommended by your eye doctor. Don't forget your annual eye exams.
Good day,
There are a great number of reasons for one to develop macular degeneration. Excessive smoking, poor diet, medications, are among some of the causes. In order to slow the progression, ask your doctor about vitamins. There are a large number of vitamin pills available. One thing to always remember. While the disease can be devastating, there are numerous new treatments for the disease. There are 2 types, wet and dry. The dry form does not progress nearly as rapidly and is not as devastating. One thing I want to stress YOUR MOTHER WILL NOT GO BLIND IN THE SENSE OF LOSS OF ALL VISION. There are legal definitions of blindness. Dark is not one of them.
Robert Maynard, O.D.
There are a great number of reasons for one to develop macular degeneration. Excessive smoking, poor diet, medications, are among some of the causes. In order to slow the progression, ask your doctor about vitamins. There are a large number of vitamin pills available. One thing to always remember. While the disease can be devastating, there are numerous new treatments for the disease. There are 2 types, wet and dry. The dry form does not progress nearly as rapidly and is not as devastating. One thing I want to stress YOUR MOTHER WILL NOT GO BLIND IN THE SENSE OF LOSS OF ALL VISION. There are legal definitions of blindness. Dark is not one of them.
Robert Maynard, O.D.
This is a genetic disease. We usually treat them with a different type of injection if it is a wet macular degeneration. For the dry macular degeneration, we teach our patients to have a special diet and AREDS formula.
There are many causes including genetics and aging. Smoke exposure and certain medical conditions can make it worse. You and your mother should be examined regularly and follow your doctors guidance. Taking a Lutein supplement, eating a diet rich with green leafy vegetables, antioxidants (in food or supplements) and wearing UV protection are all helpful.
Macular degeneration usually happens in old age, mostly in caucasians. There’s a strong genetic component associated with it. There are 2 types of MD, dry and wet type. For dry MD, your doctor can prescribe eye vitamins and recommend incorporating green, leafy vegetables in the diet. For the wet type, you would need intravitreal injections.