Dry macular degeneration usually develops gradually and painlessly. In addition, wet macular degeneration progresses rapidly causing vision loss.
Symptoms of macular degeneration
- Need for brighter light than usual for reading or doing close work
- Difficult to adapt for low light levels, such as entering a dimly lit place from a well-lit area.
- Increased blurry vision when reading printed words
- Decreased intensity or brightness of colored objects
- Difficulty to recognize faces
- Gradual increase in the unclear, confusing and/or misty overall vision
- Blind spots or blurred center vision, combined with a drop in the sharpness (acuity) of the vision
One eye may have poor wavy vision, while the other eye remains fine for years. It may be difficult to notice any or much change because the good eye compensates for the weak one. The vision and lifestyle begin to be dramatically-affect when it develops in both eyes.
Visual hallucinations - Macular symptom
Some with macular degeneration may experience visual hallucinations (such as unusual patterns, geometric figures, animals or even faces) as their vision loss becomes more severe. People may be afraid to express these symptoms with the doctors or friends or family for fear that they may consider crazy. However, such hallucinations are common among macular degeneration patients.