Age-related macular degeneration(ARMD),one of the most common causes of blindness,should be considered more due to its exponential increase in the coming 20 years as a result of increasing the age of the population.Wh...Age-related macular degeneration(ARMD),one of the most common causes of blindness,should be considered more due to its exponential increase in the coming 20 years as a result of increasing the age of the population.Whereas more recent studies offered newer scaling systems for ARMD,traditionally it is classified as the early and late stages.The main injury in this disease occurred in retinal pigment epithelium(RPE)and the retina.RPE cells have a crucial role in hemostasis and supporting photoreceptors.In the early stages,damages to RPE are minimal and mainly no treatment is needed because most patients are asymptomatic.However,in the late stages,RPE impairment may lead to the invasion of choroidal vessels into the retina.Although anti-angiogenic agents can inhibit this abnormal growth of blood vessels,they cannot stop it completely,and finally,total loss of retinal cells may occur(geographical atrophy).Since this prevalent disease has not had any cure yet,the concept of substituting the RPE cells should be considered.Repairing the injury to central nervous system cells is almost impossible because the regenerative capacity of these cells is limited.Recently,the use of regenerative substitutes has been suggested to replace damaged tissues.Amniotic membrane(AM)has been raised as a suitable substitute for damaged RPE cells due to all of its unique properties:pluripotency,anti-angiogenic effect,and anti-inflammatory effect.Based on the few studies that have been published so far,it seems that the use of this membrane in the treatment of ARMD can be helpful,but more studies are needed.展开更多
文摘Age-related macular degeneration(ARMD),one of the most common causes of blindness,should be considered more due to its exponential increase in the coming 20 years as a result of increasing the age of the population.Whereas more recent studies offered newer scaling systems for ARMD,traditionally it is classified as the early and late stages.The main injury in this disease occurred in retinal pigment epithelium(RPE)and the retina.RPE cells have a crucial role in hemostasis and supporting photoreceptors.In the early stages,damages to RPE are minimal and mainly no treatment is needed because most patients are asymptomatic.However,in the late stages,RPE impairment may lead to the invasion of choroidal vessels into the retina.Although anti-angiogenic agents can inhibit this abnormal growth of blood vessels,they cannot stop it completely,and finally,total loss of retinal cells may occur(geographical atrophy).Since this prevalent disease has not had any cure yet,the concept of substituting the RPE cells should be considered.Repairing the injury to central nervous system cells is almost impossible because the regenerative capacity of these cells is limited.Recently,the use of regenerative substitutes has been suggested to replace damaged tissues.Amniotic membrane(AM)has been raised as a suitable substitute for damaged RPE cells due to all of its unique properties:pluripotency,anti-angiogenic effect,and anti-inflammatory effect.Based on the few studies that have been published so far,it seems that the use of this membrane in the treatment of ARMD can be helpful,but more studies are needed.
