Most seniors and other people who suffer from
vascular, heart, blood clotting problems or even arthritis are well aware of
the benefits of taking a daily aspirin. In fact many people have been
prescribed aspirin as part of their overall care by their primary care or other
specialty physicians. Seniors are also well aware that age related macular
degeneration (AMD) continues to be a leading cause of vision loss. Until
recently there was some confusion and disagreement regarding whether it was
safe or even risky for those who have AMD to take aspirin as it could increase
bleeding risk in the retina and worsen AMD. A very careful review of
information was reported in the journal Retina and gave
us good insight into the conclusions that overall, the types and size of
studies showing the positive benefits of aspirin use for cardiovascular health
were quite a bit better that the smaller limited studies showing a possible
adverse effect of aspirin use in relation to AMD. The benefits of aspirin usage
include preserving the duration and quality of life by decreasing stroke and
heart attack risk. These benefits seem to far outweigh the theoretical risks of
possibly exacerbating wet AMD, which we can now control reasonably well with
anti-VEGF injection therapy with Eylea®, Lucentis® and other available
medications.
If you or someone you know takes aspirin and
has or has been recently diagnosed with age related macular degeneration (AMD)
it appears safe and beneficial to follow your physicians prescribing
instructions and not worry about any increased risk of worsening AMD. If you
have questions or need to schedule an eye exam please call
Center for Sight 508-730-2020, visit Center for Sight, Google+ or www.facebook.com/centerforsightfallriver to schedule an appointment.
Center for Sight is conveniently located
at 1565
North Main Street, Suite 406, Fall River, Massachusetts 02720 for patients from
Massachusetts or Rhode Island.
