New Macula Eye Disease Discovered

University of Lowa’s scientists have come out with a finding about a new inherited eye disease that affects a part of the retina called the macula. Macula is the part of retina that forms the high-resolution central vision area.

Macula gets damaged in retinal conditions like macular degeneration and can even suffer in case if the person is a patient of diabetes. Macula plays an integral role especially while reading and driving. The new inherited disease came into the attention of the scientists after a person from United States approached a doctor for eye problem. The finding of the disease is expected to increase the comprehension of other common retinal diseases.

Study's lead author Vinit Mahajan, MD, Ph.D., assistant professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences at the University of Iowa Roy J and Lucille A Carver College of Medicine said, "It is rare to find a new inherited eye disease that affects the macula. We thought we had seen them all." He added, "This newly found retinal disease causes abnormal blood vessels in the macula, and these vessels are prone to bleeding. This causes swelling or scars that ''black out'' or blur parts of the field of vision."

"If a doctor saw just one family member, they would probably call this macular degeneration. We knew there was something different, and we had to examine the rest of the family," Mahajan said.

The whole team of scientists evaluated 20 extended family members who had some or other problem with their eyes. Some were reported with central vision loss while others suffered from strabismus which is a condition of where eyes are not aligned. The findings have been reported in the November 9 issue of the Archives of ophthalmology.

For more information go to www.maculardegenerationassociation.org