Stem Cell Treatment for Macular Degeneration

Macular degeneration is a chronic eye disease characterized by the deterioration of tissue in the center of the retina called the macula. Macular degeneration may affect only one eye at the start; however, in most cases it does eventually affect both. The disease does not cause total blindness, but it worsen quality of life by causing blurring or a blind spot in one's central vision. Clear central vision is needed for driving, reading, recognizing faces and doing detailed work.

Macular degeneration usually affects adults aged 50 and older. The most common form of the disease, affecting about 90% of sufferers is dry macular degeneration. This form of the disease currently has no viable drug treatment and no cure.

Treatment is available using autologous stem cells, in other words, stem cells that are taken from the patient’s own body. This treatment may prevent the progression of dry and wet macular degeneration by reducing the deposits in the retinal pigment epithelium found beneath the macula. In addition, it may also prevent the destruction of the photoreceptors in both types of the disease by reactivating proper micro-vessel activity and curbing the abnormal blood vessel growth beneath.

Research is being done to test the use of embryonic stem cells to grow retinal pigment epithelium cells. These are the specific cells that are destroyed when a person suffers from macular degeneration. Promise has been shown in reversing the damage caused by macular degeneration in animals trials.