Awareness week: 10% people Tested During AMD Week Referred to an Eye Specialist

AMD (Age-related Macular Degeneration) Awareness Week ran from 23 - 29 September to promote early detection of the signs of AMD, the most common cause of registered blindness in Ireland.⁽¹⁾

The NCBI (National Council for the Blind of Ireland), Fighting Blindness, the Irish College of Ophthalmologists (ICO) and the Association of Optometrists Ireland (AOI), supported by Novartis, worked together to increase public awareness of AMD and to highlight the importance of regular testing to identify early signs of the condition.

This year’s AMD awareness campaign had a sporting focus and encouraged people over the age of 50 to “Keep an eye on the ball for AMD” with regular eye checks and by maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

Throughout AMD Awareness Week, free testing was available to detect the early signs of AMD at a range of participating independent opticians/optometrists nationwide and at the Novartis mobile testing unit in Dublin, Galway, Limerick, Cork and Waterford.

10% of people tested for Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) during AMD Awareness Week this year were referred to an eye doctor for further examination in relation to the condition which reinforces the statistic that AMD is thought to affect one in ten Irish people over the age of 50⁽²⁾.

Further information about AMD visit www.amd.ie
 

^{References:  1. NCBI Report ‘The Cost of Sight Loss; the economic impact of vision impairment and blindness in the Republic of Ireland’}

                      ^{2. www.amdalliance.org}