Rajanala christopher

Introduction

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a progressive retinal neurodegenerative disease that involves the loss of photoreceptor cells and supportive retinal pigmented epithelial cells (RPE). The RPE has multiple functions, it acts as a blood-retina barrier, nourishes the photoreceptors, and is responsible for the phagocytosis of debris and wound healing (1). Several external and intrinsic risk factors (summarized in Figure 1) contribute to the pathophysiology of AMD, resulting in localized inflammation and neurodegeneration of the macula (the central part of the retina). The onset of the disease is characterized by the formation of lipid-rich extracellular deposits called drusen particles (2). AMD affects 28 million people worldwide and causes loss of vision in the population aged over 50 (3). The Clinical AMD staging system (4), based on the size of drusen particles, as identified by the color fundus photography, classifies the disease into the following grades: Grade 1, which has no drus

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