What Is Yellow Spot Disease ?

Advanced age, family history, exposure to ultraviolet light, and smoking are risk factors. But advanced age and genetic predisposition remain the two most significant risk factors for the onset of age-related macular degeneration.

What makes it known as the yellow dot?
It gets its name from the fact that the retina appears yellow in this area as a result of some unique pigments in the macula.
The two are equivalent to macular degeneration.
Macular degeneration, or age-related macular degeneration, is the term used most frequently to describe this condition.

Why does Yellow Spot Disease Occur?
The cause is still not entirely clear. Age and genetic predisposition are the two main risk factors for the onset of age-related macular degeneration. In other words, individuals with similar findings in the family have a higher chance of developing. Smoking and ultraviolet light exposure are two additional risk factors, the latter of which is more prevalent in people who live in sunny climates.

What are the symptoms? Can these symptoms be confused with other diseases? What would you recommend in this situation?
A decline in the quality of vision, irregular vision, and refraction in vision are the patients' primary complaints. These signs could appear in additional retinal diseases as well. Particularly, impaired vision is a characteristic of many macular diseases. Oblique vision of flat objects, also known as broken vision (metamorphopsia), is a common symptom of wet-type macular degeneration.

Because of this, anyone exhibiting the aforementioned symptoms needs to see an ophthalmologist and have a thorough examination. Tests can be run in addition to the examination to confirm the diagnosis. A few tests are carried out in cases of age-related macular degeneration to confirm the diagnosis, choose the course of treatment, and conduct follow-up after the test. The two procedures that are most frequently used are fundus fluorescein angiography (eye angiography) and optical coherence tomography (retinal tomography). Fluorescein, a specialised dye, is administered from the patient's forearm vein during eye angiography. The vessels in the retinal layer are imaged and photographed as part of this examination. There is no therapeutic value to eye angiography. Some patients may experience nausea as a side effect. Additionally, for 1-2 days, the dye may darken the colour of your skin and urine. The retinal thickness can be calculated using optical coherence tomography, which also provides incredibly detailed sections of the retina, particularly the macular layer.
Macular degeneration types Dry and wet types of age-related macular degeneration are the two main categories. Nearly 90% of cases of macular degeneration are of the dry type; the remaining 10% are of the wet type.
The disease known as Dry Type Yellow Spot Disease has no specific treatment. Absolute thorough eye and fundus examinations are necessary from time to time due to the slow progression of the disease and the 20% return of Wet Yellow Spot disease in dry type patients. It demonstrates the connection between nutrition and Yellow Spot disease and suggests dietary plans that include nutrients like antioxidants, vitamins, and omega-3 fatty acids.
There are numerous ways to treat Wet Type Yellow Spot disease. Currently, we only occasionally apply the Argon Laser (which we pioneered in previous years) and Photodynamic Therapy (a medicated laser), which we applied with great anticipation. Due to their inability to stop vision loss and prevent the disease from returning, these two treatments have not been widely used in recent years.

Is it possible to prevent the occurrence of the disease?
There is no treatment that can completely stop the disease from developing. Antioxidant support has, however, been shown to slow the progression of dry type macular degeneration and lessen the likelihood of conversion to wet type. The combination of vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin A, and zinc was found to be effective in lowering the frequency of conversion from dry type to wet type, according to the results of the most significant AREDS study. Some significant hints regarding genes that can cause disease have been revealed by other studies in recent years.

What difference does early diagnosis make in treatment?
An opportunity to address some of the factors influencing the disease's progression is given by an early diagnosis. For instance, smoking needs to end immediately. Additionally, the person should develop the habit of wearing sunglasses with ultraviolet protection due to the harmful effects of sunlight on macular degeneration. More importantly, the risk of developing the wet type can be diminished if it is determined that taking antioxidant support is appropriate. Additionally, the patient receives a squared paper test, which they can use to track their own findings. If the patient notices an abnormality, they can apply to the doctor before the scheduled control time and begin treatment right away. The sooner the patient seeks medical attention for wet type yellow spot disease, the sooner the treatment can begin and the less harm that edoema and bleeding in the macula will do.

How is yellow spot disease treated?
There is currently no cure for dry type macular degeneration, so patients should undergo frequent follow-up exams because there is a chance that the condition will progress to wet type. Patients should perform the Amsler test (also known as the square paper test), a type of visual field test, every day and should contact an ophthalmologist right away if any breakage, curvature, or disappearance of the existing lines occurs. Early use of sunglasses with no UV protection, a focus on eating green leafy vegetables rich in carotenoids and lutein, and quitting smoking are all recommended for preventing macular degeneration.
To lessen vision loss and maintain the current level of visual acuity is the goal of wet macular degeneration treatment. While in some circumstances argon laser treatment is sufficient, in other instances cold laser treatment (also known as photodynamic therapy) is used to stop vision loss. There is no harm done. In photodynamic therapy, the patient receives an intravenous injection of a special medication that collects after about 10 minutes in the eye's diseased tissue. The drug then becomes active and kills the vascular tissue in the tissue with the aid of a special laser beam that is placed outside the eye. Patients should wear long sleeved clothing, safety glasses, and avoid direct sunlight and halogen lamps for the first 24 to 48 hours because this medication is only excreted from the body in 24 hours. In the event that the disease returns during follow-up visits, photodynamic therapy may be used once more.

During photodynamic therapy, the macular region is exposed to laser energy (PDT).
Currently, wet macular degeneration is treated with drug therapy using anti-VEGF agents that directly combat the substance known as VEGF, which ensures the formation of vascular clumps beneath the retina layer and causes wet macular degeneration. These medications are injected into the eye over the course of 4-6 weeks. With these medications, vision is preserved in the majority of cases, and in some cases, vision is even improved.