AMD Awareness Month--February

February is Age-Related Macular Degeneration/Low Vision Awareness Month, according to Prevent Blindness (PB). As part of the observance, the group offers educational materials at no cost through its dedicated web pages and its toll-free number, such as:

• Living Well with Low Vision: This online resource offers information ranging from an extensive list of searchable, local low vision resource directories to an informative blog, authored by patient advocate and low vision educator Dan Roberts, M.M.E.
• AMD Awareness Makes a Difference: PB offers a free magnetic Amsler grid, used monitor a person's central version and can help identify vision abnormalities linked to AMD. To request a grid with instructions for use, go to: preventblindness.org/age-related-macular-degeneration-amd.
• Prevent Blindness AMD Learning Center: The online center  provides educational tools, such as AMD risk factors, treatment options, an Adult Vision Risk Assessment tool, fact sheets and more. 
• See Jane See: Almost two-thirds of those diagnosed with AMD are women, and that's why PB developed SeeJaneSee.org,  which includes eye health information tailored to women.

According to the 2013 "Cost of Vision Problems:  The Economic Burden of Vision Loss and Eye Disorders in the United States," report, blindness and low vision annually costs more than $3.7 billion, with an annual per-person treatment cost of $6,680.  Almost 3 million Americans have low vision, according to the National Eye Institute.