What Are Some Of The Symptoms Of Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD), And When Should I See A Doctor?

Aug. 24, 2009— -- Question: What are some of the symptoms of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), and when should I see a doctor if I think I have AMD?

Answer: In the early stages of age-related macular degeneration, patients may not have any symptoms. But when they start, usually with the dry form, they will note a little difficulty reading -- needing more light to see -- or a little bit of blurry vision. They also may find that going from a bright environment into a darkened room takes them longer to adjust. Any of those symptoms should lead one to see an eye doctor to see, sort out what the problem is.

In the wet form of macular degeneration, patients will note that instead of a straight line they will see things looking bent or wavy. And that should lead you to see an eye doctor and pretty quickly -- within a week or two.

Finally, for people that have a family history of macular degeneration, even if they have no symptoms and have very good vision, they should really be screened and looked at probably by age 50 but certainly into their 60s to really make sure that they don't have something that needs treatment to slow down any progression of the eye disease.