Age-related macular degeneration is a common disease of the central fundus of the eye from the age of 50, with the risk of developing the disease increasing with age. The area of the retina with the highest photoreceptor density, the so-called macula, is affected. Various risk factors such as age, genetic predisposition and environmental factors (smoking) play a role. The disease progresses in several stages. While early or intermediate AMD is usually accompanied by no or only mild symptoms, the late stages, geographic atrophy (GA) and neovascular AMD, can lead to loss of central vision.

The "dry" late form of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is geographic atrophy (GA). This involves the gradual loss of photoreceptors, retinal pigment epithelium (the nourishing cell layer of the retina) and the innermost choroidal layer (choriocapillaris) in the area of the macula. If the area of sharpest vision, the fovea, is also affected, the result is a loss of central visual acuity. There are over 5 million people affected worldwide.
While no approved therapy for GA in AMD was available until recently, two active substances from the group of complement inhibitors were approved by the FDA for the treatment of GA in AMD in the USA in 2023. EMA approval has been applied for.
The aim of the treatment is to slow down the growth of atrophy in order to stabilise vision and delay deterioration. The future GA therapies involve the intravitreal surgical administration of medication (IVOM). The drug is injected directly into the vitreous body, which fills the inside of the eye.
A comprehensive ophthalmological examination can determine whether a patient with AMD actually has GA and is eligible for intravitreal treatment. At the Department of Ophthalmology at Ulm University Hospital, there is a special consultation for patients with geographic atrophy for all questions relating to diagnosis, treatment indication and progression assessment, where you will be examined both clinically and using state-of-the-art, high-resolution imaging.

Thursday: 08:00 - 15:30

In the wet late form, neovascular AMD, small, abnormal blood vessels form, which lead to fluid accumulation and haemorrhages in the area of the macula. These changes can cause a sudden deterioration in vision. The most common outpatient treatment is carried out using special active substances that are repeatedly injected into the vitreous cavity of the eye (intravitreal surgical injection of medication, IVOM). Although this does not achieve a complete cure, it does stabilise the disease.
The Department of Ophthalmology at Ulm University Hospital offers a macular consultation and is specially equipped for this diagnosis with state-of-the-art diagnostics. Treatment takes place in the highly specialised Centre for Intravitreal Therapies (ZiT).

Monday to Wednesday: 08:00 - 15:30
Friday: 08:00 - 13:00

• Wide-angle / fundus photography
• Spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT)
• OCT angiography (OCT-A)
• Fundus autofluorescence (FAF)
• Near-infrared imaging
• Wide-angle fluorescein/indocyanine green angiography
• Microperimetry