<div style="text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 1rem;">According to a recent study from the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai, patients with a particular type of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the main cause of blindness in the United States, are also very likely to have advanced heart valve disease, carotid artery disease linked to certain types of strokes, or underlying heart damage from heart failure and heart attacks.</span><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">This study is the first to pinpoint the specific high-risk cardiovascular and carotid artery diseases that are connected to the eye condition. It was published on November 17 in BMJ Open Ophthalmology. The results may lead to enhanced screening in order to save vision, identify undiagnosed heart disease, and stop harmful cardiovascular events.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"For the first time, we have been able to connect these specific high-risk cardiovascular diseases to a specific form of AMD, the one with subretinal drusenoid deposits (SDDs)," explains lead author R. Theodore Smith, MD, PhD, Professor of Ophthalmology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"This study is the first strong link between the leading cause of blindness, AMD, and heart disease, the leading cause of death worldwide. Furthermore, we also have strong evidence for what actually happens: the blood supply to the eye is directly diminished by these diseases, either by heart damage that diminishes blood supply throughout the body or from a blocked carotid artery that directly impedes blood flow to the eye.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">A poor blood supply can cause damage to any part of the body, and with these specific diseases, the destroyed retina and leftover SDDs are that damage. Retinal damage means vision loss, and can lead to blindness."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The central region of the retina known as the macula, which is crucial for reading and driving vision, is damaged in AMD, which is the main cause of visual impairment and blindness in persons over 65.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Small, yellow cholesterol deposits known as drusen, which develop behind the retinal pigment epithelium, are one of the main symptoms of early AMD (RPE). They may rob the retina of blood and oxygen, which could result in blindness. The production of drusen can be slowed down with the right vitamin intake. Subretinal drusenoid deposits (SDDs), the other main type of early AMD, are less well known and can only be found using sophisticated retinal imaging.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">These deposits, which accumulate above the RPE and immediately below the light-sensitive retinal cells, are made up of a distinct type of cholesterol and are where the damage and loss of vision take place. SDDs have no known treatments. Initially, Dr Smith and a group of Mount Sinai researchers discovered that SDDs were more prevalent in individuals with cardiovascular illness or stroke. HT</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>