KUCHING: Some 46,000 Malaysians beyond the age of 45 years old are at risk of irreversible blindness due to wet age-related macular degeneration (Wet AMD).
The prevalence of Wet AMD is expected to rise along with Malaysia’s ageing population.
Given the scenario, Malaysian Society of Ophthalmology and Consultant Ophthalmologist and Vitreoretinal Surgeon, OasisEye Specialists president Dr Kenneth Fong Choong Sian said, “This warranted an urgent need for us to shed light on the disease”.
According to him, many Malaysians are still unaware of Wet AMD and its symptoms, which had caused a delay in seeking treatment and these could result in loss of sight quickly.
“There is no outright cure for Wet AMD, but the good news is there are treatments that can delay the progression of the disease and even improve the patients’ vision,” he disclosed in a statement issued by Bayer.
Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the life science fields of health care and nutrition.
Wet AMD is a progressive and chronic type of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and it occurs when abnormal blood vessels beneath the retina start to grow under the macula.
Symptoms of Wet AMD usually appear suddenly, causing distortions and blurred vision and leading to irreversible damage within a short period of time.
Dr Fong said while Wet AMD only accounted for only about 10 percent of all AMD cases, it was responsible for 90 percent of the severe vision loss associated with the disease.
The most effective clinical treatment for patients suffering from Wet AMD is a peridiotic injection of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) into the eye, using dosing regimen such as Treat and Extend (T&E) regimen.
Proactive dosing regimen such as T&E regimen has become a primary approach in treating patients with Wet AMD. Anti-VEGF injection into the eye stops growth of new blood vessels by blocking the effects of growth signals (VEGF) the body sends to generate new blood vessels.
“Early detection is vital for early treatment to slow the progression of Wet AMD, and this is the kind of disease that requires on-going treatment to stop the symptoms from worsening.
“However, due to the recent Covid-19 outbreak and the need to minimise risk, experts have reported that more people are at risk of irreversible damage to their sight due to missed care,” he said.
Dr Vincent Ruland, Country Division Head of Bayer’s Pharmaceuticals Division for Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei, said, “Retinal disease represents a major global health burden, especially as the world population ages and grows.
“At Bayer, we are committed to reducing the number of people impacted by visual impairment through innovative products and research.
“We are delighted to be able to help improve outcomes for five of the leading causes of vision loss in the working-age and elderly population,” he said.
