Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the most common cause of blindness, contributing to about 50% of all blindness in New Zealand. It is estimated that 1 in 7 people over the age of 50 will be affected by macular degeneration. The disease can not only result in devastating visual loss for untreated patients but can also come with significant socioeconomic impact, with the total cost of vision loss from AMD in New Zealand estimated to be $391 million in 20161. With an increasingly ageing population, the burden of AMD is set to increase.
A degenerative process affecting the macula, AMD signs can often be found in the early stages during ophthalmic fundal screening procedures and as part of incidental posterior pole findings. Typically, patients remain asymptomatic until late AMD, which may begin to impair central vision.
Using the Beckman classification, one can define AMD’s stages.














