The leading cause in the US of irreversible vision loss in patients over the age of 60 and a leading cause of vision loss worldwide is age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Those having early forms of the disease may see wavy lines or distorted vision and have difficulty seeing and reading. Advanced diseased patients have loss of central vision - unable see that on which they are trying to focus. For elderly patients, the inability to read correlates with loss of independence, disability, depression, increased risk of falls, and mortality. There are two types of AMD: geographic atrophy (the dry type): currently no available treatments OR wet macular degeneration - treated with frequent injection therapy. AREDS2 (age-related eye disease study 2) vitamins are recommended for moderate and advanced stages of the disease. It is estimated that currently 196M patients worldwide are early stages of the disease. Patients with geographic atrophy worldwide number 5 million worldwide (1million in US). An aging populaltion suggests this number will double by 2040.
