{"id":1937,"date":"2026-10-20T08:54:03","date_gmt":"2026-10-20T08:54:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/laseristanbulclinic.com\/eye-health\/conditions\/macular-degeneration-symptoms-and-treatment\/"},"modified":"2026-10-20T12:58:51","modified_gmt":"2026-10-20T12:58:51","slug":"macular-degeneration-symptoms-and-treatment","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/laseristanbulclinic.com\/en\/eye-health\/conditions\/macular-degeneration-symptoms-and-treatment\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is the Macula? Macular Degeneration (Yellow Spot): Symptoms and Treatment"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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  4. What Is the Macula? Macular Degeneration (Yellow Spot): Symptoms and Treatment<\/span><\/li><\/ol><\/div>\t\t\t

    What Is the Macula? Macular Degeneration (Yellow Spot): Symptoms and Treatment<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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    \"Retina<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

    The macula is the small central part of the retina that gives you sharp, straight-ahead vision for reading, faces and driving. In age-related macular degeneration (AMD, the “yellow spot disease”) it wears out, blurring or distorting the centre of your sight while side vision stays. About 80% of cases are the slow dry form and 20% the faster wet form. Wet AMD can be treated with eye injections; dry AMD has no cure, but supplements, lifestyle and new therapies can slow it. Our retina surgeon, Do\u00e7. Dr. Muhammet Derda \u00d6zer, assesses retinal disease.<\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div><\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n\n

    What is the macula, and what does “macula” mean?<\/h2><\/div>

    The macula is the part of the retina that controls sharp, straight-ahead vision, according to the US National Eye Institute (NEI). The retina is the light-sensitive layer lining the back of the eye, and the macula sits at its centre. It is the area you use to read a page, recognise a face, thread a needle or read a road sign.<\/p>\n

    The word “macula” is Latin for “spot”. The full anatomical name, macula lutea, means “yellow spot”, which is why people searching in other languages, and many older patient leaflets, call macular degeneration the “yellow spot disease”. The macula looks yellowish under an eye doctor’s instrument because it contains yellow pigments (lutein and zeaxanthin), the same two substances that appear in the supplements discussed below.<\/p>\n

    Here is a simple way to picture it. Your retina<\/strong> is like the sensor in a camera, and the macula<\/strong> is its sharpest, most detailed patch. The rest of the retina gives you side (peripheral) vision, which helps you move around but cannot read small print. When the macula is damaged, the centre of what you look at is affected first.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/section>\n\n\n\n\n

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    What is macular degeneration (yellow spot disease)?<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t

    Macular degeneration is a condition in which the macula gradually deteriorates. The usual form is age-related macular degeneration (AMD), which the NHS describes as a common condition that affects the middle part of your vision and typically starts in a person’s 50s or later. It does not cause complete blindness: the NEI states that AMD doesn’t cause complete blindness, but losing central vision can make it harder to see faces, read, drive or do close-up work. AMD is painless and does not change how your eyes look.<\/p>\n

    How common is it? A 2014 meta-analysis in The Lancet Global Health<\/em> (129,664 people, 39 studies) estimated that 8.69% of people aged 45 to 85 have some form of AMD, mostly early disease, and 0.37% have late AMD. It projected 196 million people with AMD worldwide in 2020, rising to 288 million by 2040. Prevalence was higher in people of European ancestry than in Asian or African populations.<\/p>\n

    There are two forms:<\/p>

    <\/th>Dry AMD (atrophic)<\/th>Wet AMD (neovascular)<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
    Share of cases<\/th>About 80% (AAO)<\/td>About 20% (AAO)<\/td><\/tr>
    What happens<\/th>The macula thins with age and yellow deposits called drusen build up<\/td>Abnormal new blood vessels grow under the retina and leak, which can scar the macula<\/td><\/tr>
    Speed<\/th>Usually gradual, over years<\/td>Much faster than dry AMD; the NHS says vision can drop within weeks or months<\/td><\/tr>
    Treatment<\/th>No cure; slow it with supplements, lifestyle and, in late stages, new injections<\/td>Anti-VEGF injections; sometimes light or laser treatment<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/div>

    The NEI divides dry AMD into early (no symptoms), intermediate (mild symptoms possible) and late (vision loss obvious). Anyone with AMD should know the warning signs below, because dry AMD can be followed by the wet form.<\/p><\/div>\t<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/section>\n\n\n\n\n

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    What are the early warning signs of macular degeneration?<\/h2>\n\t\t\t

    In early dry AMD there are usually no symptoms at all, so it is often found at a routine eye test, as the NHS notes. When symptoms do appear, the main early warning signs of macular degeneration are:<\/p>\n\t\t\t