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Causes of Vision Loss

Age-related Macular Degeneration

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Crude prevalence of vision loss due to age-related macular degeneration, 2020

(all ages, males & females)

Source: Data from VLEG/GBD 2020 model, accessed via the IAPB Vision Atlas
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Age-related Macular Degeneration: Global summary

The age-standardised prevalence of blindness due to age-related macular degeneration (AMD) declined by almost 30% from 1990 to 2020, which was likely associated with the widespread clinical introduction of anti-VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor) therapy for exudative AMD.

Since most patients with AMD show the currently untreatable non-exudative form that can progress to atrophy of the foveal centre (geographic atrophy), the development of treatments and prophylactic measures specifically against non-exudative AMD are required.

As an example, the prevalence of blindness and vision loss due to AMD and disease burden increased significantly in China from 1990 to 2019, especially for women and middle-aged and elderly population (Zhang et al., 2021).

It’s important to also note that for every person that experiences vision impairment and blindness from AMD, there are many more living with early stage AMD who need comprehensive and integrated people centred eye care services to prevent vision loss.

References

Related pages on the Vision Atlas