(http://www.PreserveMacForte.com) CentraSight, a new treatment program that is showing plenty of promise, could help Americans living with advanced age-related macular degeneration (AMD) to see the faces of family and friends, according to a press release on January 7.
The press release noted that the CentraSight program includes a process where a small U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved telescope is implanted into one of an AMD patient’s eyes. Once implanted, the nearly pea-sized telescope causes enlarged central vision images to be viewed over a larger portion of the retina to enhance central vision. The eye that does not get the implant, meanwhile, provides the patient with peripheral vision required for orientation and mobility, according to the press release.
“Patients living with end-stage macular degeneration have extreme difficulty performing simple, everyday tasks,” said Edward Paul, O.D., Ph.D., a low vision specialist and CentraSight team leader for North Carolina, in the press release.
“Both eyes have central visual loss, so recognizing faces of friends and family, performing activities of daily living, and safely crossing the street becomes impossible. This can have a debilitating effect, both physically and psychologically. For many, this device has made a marked improvement in their lives. We are very encouraged that Medicare has granted access for this new treatment option to eligible patients in the State of North Carolina.”
According to the press release, results from a couple of clinical trials in the United States, conducted at more than two dozen cutting-edge ophthalmic centers, have been published in scientific journals of the peer-reviewed variety.
According to the press release, patients who are not eligible to receive the implanted device need not fret because they can take advantage of an external telescope that is mounted onto specially customized eyeglasses.
According to the press release, macular degeneration is the leading cause of vision loss in the U.S. Recent studies have shown that the number of AMD cases is expected to rise in the years ahead as the elderly population lives longer due to advances in modern medicine. While AMD is a condition that adversely impacts the elderly, the elderly population need not succumb to the idea that the eye condition in unavoidable. A healthy lifestyle that includes maintaining an ideal weight and eating lots of fresh produce will help to promote eye health.