Drusen is commonly known as ‘Age related Macular Degeneration’. Drusen is a chronic eye disease which is marked by destruction of tissue in that part of eye which is responsible for central vision.
Drusen does not result in total blindness but will blur your central vision. The blurring of vision is due to the damage of the macula — a small area present at the back of your eye. Macula is responsible in making you notice the fine details when you try to focus. Drusen makes it hard to do things which need sharp focus at central vision such as reading, driving, recognizing faces etc.
Drusen is of two types; Wet Drusen and Dry Drusen. Dry form of Drusen is commonly found. It develops slowly and causes the central vision to get dimmer and dimmer day by day. It does not result in loss of vision. On the other hand, wet Drusen will results in serious vision loss within a week or few months.
Causes Of Drusen:
The causes of Drusen are discussed below:
- Dry Drunsen formation is a gradual process. As the person gets older, the cells in macula become thin and break down, and the waste deposit collects at the back of the eye. Gradually, this deposit can damage the macula.
- Wet Drunsen is caused due to the abnormal growth of the blood vessels at the back of eye. Such blood vessels can break down easily, which results in leakage of fluid and blood under the macula. Due to this, the macula is damaged and there can distortion in the central vision.
Symptoms Of Drusen:
The major symptom of Drusen can be:
- If dry Drusen formation is there then person will have vision that will get blurred with the passage of time that means slowly and steadily. It can take several years for a person to notice the affect on his reading, driving, and other everyday activities.
- In case of wet Drusen formation the vision loss happens quickly and it could be severe. The first symptom that can be noticed in case of wet form of Drusen is that the straight lines look wavy and curved. Immediate consultation is needed when this happens.
