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What are drusen, and how are they related to dry macular degeneration?
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eye disease
An ophthalmologist performing LASIK eye surgery.
Drusen are small, yellow deposits or masses of extracellular material that accumulate under the retina.12
In the context of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), drusen serve as a primary clinical indicator for diagnosis. Specifically, dry macular degeneration is characterized by the presence of these deposits alongside the atrophic loss of retinal pigment cells in the macula lutea. While wet AMD involves the growth of fragile, abnormal blood vessels, dry AMD is defined by this gradual cellular deterioration and the accumulation of drusen, which may progress slowly enough that the condition initially goes unnoticed.21