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Treatments emerge for degenerative blindness

(Published: The Virginia Pilot - Monday, April 24, 2000
Section: DAILY BREAK Source: ALEXANDRIA BERGER
PART V)

Fifth in a six-part series on alternative medicine: Can the elderly prevent blindness with vitamin and mineral supplements alone?

Try this: Put a nickel in front of each eye. You may not look left or right. Frustrating, isn't it? That's what it's like having the blinding disease, age-related macular degeneration, or AMD.

When Swiss neurologist Peter Woermser began losing his sight to macular degeneration, he thought he saw a smudge on the page he was reading. A few months later, the grayish hazy looking blob still remained blocking his central vision.

Woermser, then 50, was told that nothing could be done. Now 65, he can't read or drive.

Caused by the death of photoreceptor cells in the light-sensitive region of the retina called the macula, AMD is the leading caused of blindness for those over 50 in developed nations. More wide spread among people of Northern European descent, it's less common among African-Americans and Hispanics. In the United States alone, 10 million are affected.

In worst cases, like Woermser's, AMD causes complete loss of central vision. Others may have mild to moderate forms. In all cases, peripheral or side vision is left in tact and doesn't cause complete blindness. You would have noticed that using your nickels. There are two kinds of AMD: "wet" and "dry." In wet AMD, new blood vessels develop under the retina, causing hemorrhaging, swelling and scar tissue. This form affects 10 percent of all AMD patients and is nine times more likely than "dry" to cause severe vision loss.

In some cases, with early diagnosis, wet AMD can be treated with "laser photocoagulation," which seals leaking or bleeding vessels. However, this doesn't restore lost vision, nor prevent further loss.

In the less severe, dry AMD, "drusen," or yellow material, forms beneath the retina. Later, the underlying structures or parts of the retina atrophy. Studies have shown a strong link between nutrition and the disease's development. People with diets high in fruits and leafy green vegetables show a lower incidence.

In both types, an Amsler Grid, which looks like graph paper with a dot in the middle, is used to monitor symptoms. Nutrition, genetics, smoking, malabsorption, caffeine, alcohol and sunlight exposure may play a role in AMD.

The alternative approach for dry AMD includes over-the counter supplements. After studies proved them effective, Dr. Jonathan Wright, director of the Tahoma Clinic in Kent, Wash., recommends oral doses of:

• Lutein (5 to 20miligrams a day), Zeaxanthin and Beta-carotene to help filter light.
• Taurine (500 to 1,500 mg a day) to reduce the oxidative damage caused by sunlight.
• Bilberry (40 to 120 mg a day) to improve night vision, maintain capillary integrity, stabilize collagen and improve eye blood vessel circulation.
• Vinpocetine to improve utilization of glucose and oxygen in the retina.
• Vitamin C (1,000-3,000 mg a day), Vitamin E (400 to 800 IU a day) and Selenium (200 mg a day), antioxidants to nourish the retina and protect against UV light.
• Essential fatty acids like DHA, to help protect the retina's photoreceptor cells.
• Zinc (30 to 50 mg a day), which when deficient has been linked to AMD. It's given along with copper (2 to 3 mg a day).
• Ginko bilboa extract (40 to 120 mg) to improve blood flow to the eye.

Additionally, Dr. Robert Abel Jr., author of the book"The Eye Care Revolution: Prevent and Reverse Common Vision Problems," recommends eye vitamins, such as Maxivision and Ocutive.

Before trying these over-the-counter supplements, discuss them with your doctor. Supplements can have side effects or interact with prescription medications.

Wright also treats patients with high-dose infusions of zinc, selenium and trace minerals. With combination oral and infusion therapy, he reports permanent vision improvement in seven out of 10 patients.

Visudyne or Verteporfin, a newly FDA-approved, light-activating drug treatment for wet AMD, stabilized or improved the vision of 61 percent of those tested. Using photodynamic therapy, the infused drug is activated by a non-thermal or "cool" laser, which destroys the leaky, abnormal blood vessels leaving the surrounding healthy tissue.

Next: Part VI - Can doctors stop pain with algae?

Write to Alexandria Berger, c/o The Virginia-Pilot,
150 W. Brambleton Avenue, Norfolk, Va., 23510

E-mail her at alex@imperfectnavigator.com