How would you verify a diagnosis of macular degeneration?

What tests could be performed, or how could you be certain that someone has it? (Doing this for school and can't find definite answers online. I'm hoping an optometrist or ophthalmologist will answer)

thanks

The studies done for macular disease include, vision, which will most likely be lower than normal. With everything else in the eye ' normal' such as the cornea and lens and the vitreous all being clear, the only two things left besides neurological problems...are the macula and the optic nerve.

Assuming the optic nerve is normal, the retina is left.

The macula has a fairly constant form or shape. The anatomy is looked at directly using some sort of imaging device such as a small lens. The shape, or form of the macula, it's color, the amount of fluid, presence of other problems such as diabetes, hypertensive or other vascular disorders that 'leak', or choroidal problems such as central serous choroidopathy being ruled out almost immediately just by looking, sends one to other forms of diagnosis. These include fluorescein angiography, ICG angiography, and comparative fundus photography. These almost always tell the story. Now days we use Ocular Coherent Tomography or OCT which gives a true 'cross section' of the retina, the nerve fiber layers, macula, pigment layers, bruch's membrane, internal limiting membrane, tissues on the surface of the retina, dilated vessels, fluid, blood, exudate....all show up. The scan takes about a second.

Try the American Academy of Ophthalmology web site. Go to retina, macular degeneration, etc.

You can also find a nice site from a retina surgeon in Florida called The Macula Center. Dr.D. has a section there on macular disease and the different types and diagnostic tools used.

That should get you started....

I'm definitely not a doctor, but a test I know of (that a patient can do themselves online even) is called the Amster Grid. You can look it up through yahoo search and it's easy to find. ;) Good luck.

what Paul MB said!