MAY IS MACULAR DEGENERATION AWARENESS MONTH

 HARRISBURG, MAY 8 – State Sen. Connie Williams Tuesday gained the unanimous support of her colleagues in the Senate in declaring May 2007 as Macular Degeneration Awareness Month in Pennsylvania.

 She began her remarks by quoting from the Macula Vision Research Foundation founder Herbert Lotman, whose wife Karen developed macular degeneration in 1989, “Most people take their vision for granted until an injury or vision abnormality makes them realize that the ability to see is fundamental to our daily life and an irreplaceable asset.”

 “I offered this resolution to draw attention to Macular Degeneration and to help Pennsylvanians become more familiar with the symptoms of the disease,” Williams said. “None of us can – nor should -- take our vision for granted.”

 In age-related macular degeneration, or AMD, the light-sensing cells of the macula of the eye malfunction and may over time cease to work. People who suffer from macular degeneration lose all but their peripheral vision.

 The disease is usually painless. People who suffer from AMD generally start by seeing shadowy areas in their central vision or experience unusually fuzzy or distorted vision. One of the simple diagnostic tools is to look at a black grid. As the disease progresses, the lines will start to appear wavy and some patches of the grid may appear blank.

 Macular Degeneration affects as many as 14 million Americans. It is the leading cause of vision loss and blindness in Americans over the age of 50. Additionally, it affects one in 10,000 children. There is no cure for the disease.

 In the greater Philadelphia area, the Macula Vision Research Foundation is helping to educate people about the disease, to raise money to find new ways to prevent AMD, and to find a cure.

 The mission of the research foundation is to find the cause, prevention, treatment and cure for macula vision diseases with the goal of saving sight and providing public education, advocacy and support to those with macular degeneration.

 All of the money raised by the foundation is used for research and education.

 The foundation has awarded more than $8.3 million toward research. Additionally, the foundation offers tangible support to people affected by the disease with programs such as SupportSight: The National Support Group for MVRF, the SupportSight Buddy System, large print and audio book swaps, a newsletter, a pharmacy program, Web site and a toll-free help line. The help line can be reached at 1-866-4-MACULA (1-866-462-2852). The Web site is at www.mvrf.org.