Drusen: Causes And Symptoms
Posted by Accuspire on Jul 8th 2020
Sometimes there are yellow deposits under the retina and the condition is known as drusen. It is a fatty protein which is made up of lipids. It does not cause age-related macular degeneration (AMD) likely, but having drusen can increase the risk of developing AMD.
There are various types of drusen like hard and small. Hard drusen are smaller in size and are away from one another and it does not cause any kind of vision problem at all. Small drusens are larger when compared to hard one and appear closely in a cluster, without clearly seen edges. This type is responsible for increased AMD risk.
Optic nerve drusen:
It can also appear in the optic nerve. It is made up of protein and calcium salts. They appear in both the eyes. It is also known as optic disc drusen and do not have any relation with ageing. It appears mostly in children and usually do not affect vision. On the contrary if adults are suffering from this condition, there is a chance of losing the peripheral vision.
Drusen Causes:
It occurs with ageing and the exact cause is unknown. Its relationship with degenerative macular disease is also not clear. Soft drusen is generally a sign of AMD.
Drusen Symptoms:
The symptoms are not clear at first and routine eye examination is the only way to find this condition. The presence of soft drusen in cluster is a sign of dry AMD. Some of the other symptoms are difficulty in seeing, hazy vision, blurry spot in central vision. The symptoms are also not seen in optic nerve drusen at first, but some experience symptoms like graying or flickering in vision and loss of peripheral vision.
