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It's possible to carry out a very simple test to see if you're suffering with ARMD already without being aware. In the early stages the vision loss is very small and the brain cleverly covers up the defects so you don't notice.
The Amsler Grid
The Amsler grid is a useful tool for monitoring your central visual field. It is an important way to detect early and sometimes subtle visual changes in a variety of macular diseases such as ARMD and diabetic macular oedama. It is also helpful in monitoring changes in vision once they have been detected. With the Amsler grid, each eye is tested separately by you to help recognise visual symptoms that are present in one eye only.
Instructions for using the Amsler Grid
Test your vision with adequate lighting.
Wear your reading glasses or look through the reading portion of bifocal lenses. Do not use varifocal or distance glasses.
Observe the Amsler grid at a normal reading distance (about 35cm).
Cover one eye at a time with the palm of your hand.
Stare at the centre dot of the chart at all times.
Do not let your eye drift away from the centre dot.
Ask yourself the following questions as you check each eye
Are any of the lines crooked or bent? 
Are any of the boxes different in size or shape from the others?
Are any of the lines wavy, missing, blurry or discoloured?
If the answer to any of these questions is "YES" (and this has not been noticed by you before), you should contact your optometrist or doctor as soon as possible for an examination. Sometimes these changes mean that there is leakage or bleeding in the back of the eye causing swelling of the retina.
Note that this online test is an example only and is absolutely not a substitute for a properly conducted professional examination by an optometrist or doctor.
If you would like a paper version of the Amsler grid please click on the following PDF link and print a copy.
 amsler_grid 07/04/2008,14:43 9.16 Kb
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