Macular degeneration, often age-related macular degeneration (AMD or ARMD), is a medical condition that usually affects older adults and results in a loss of vision in the center of the visual field (the macula) because of damage to the retina. It occurs in "dry" and "wet" forms. It is a major cause of blindness and visual impairment in older adults, afflicting 30-50 million people globally. Macular degeneration can make it difficult or impossible to read or recognize faces, although enough peripheral vision remains to allow other activities of daily life.

Although some macular dystrophies affecting younger individuals are sometimes rarely referred to as macular degeneration, the term generally refers to age-related macular degeneration (AMD or ARMD).

The retina is a network of visual receptors and nerves. It lies on the choroid, a network of blood vessels that supply the retina with blood.

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