Can Acupuncture Help Macular Degeneration? A Traditional Chinese Medicine Perspective

Being diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) can be frightening. Many people worry about losing their independence, giving up activities they enjoy, or facing progressive vision loss with few treatment options.

While conventional medicine offers important therapies—particularly for wet macular degeneration—many patients look for additional ways to support their eye health and preserve their vision. This is where acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) may play a valuable complementary role.

At New Direction Natural Medicine, we take a whole-body approach to eye health. dRather than focusing only on the eyes themselves, we look at the underlying factors that may be influencing circulation, nutrition, inflammation, and overall health.

What Is Macular Degeneration?

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a progressive eye condition that affects the macula, the central portion of the retina responsible for detailed vision.

Common symptoms include:

• Blurred or distorted central vision

• Difficulty reading fine print

• Difficulty recognizing faces

• Reduced contrast sensitivity

• Dark or blurry spots in the center of vision

AMD is one of the leading causes of vision loss in adults over the age of 50.

There are two types of macular degeneration: dry type (most common) and wet type.

Dry macular degeneration is the most common type and develops gradually as the macula becomes damaged over time. Small yellow deposits called drusen may accumulate beneath the retina, and the retinal tissue gradually becomes thinner.

Dry AMD happens when the macula is deprived of blood flow, oxygen and nutrition. In response, the body starts to make new blood vessels to feed the starving macula.

Wet macular degeneration occurs when abnormal new blood vessels grow beneath the retina. These fragile vessels can leak fluid or blood, leading to more rapid vision loss if not treated promptly.

With wet AMD, the body builds new (but very fragile) blood vessels in an attempt to feed the macula, but because these new blood vessels are so thin and weak, they easily pop and bleed.

Because there is no cure in western medicine, patients with this disease often become fearful, defeated, and hopeless. This is why I feel the need for people to know that there is hope and acupuncture can help!

Can Acupuncture Help Macular Degeneration?

Acupuncture can help patients with macular degeneration by restoring lost vision and preventing further vision loss and/or damage. Early stage ARMD often produces the most dramatic results. Acupuncture works by improving blood flow, oxygen, and nutrients to the macula as well as the organs of the body involved in the degenerative process. Specific acupuncture points are used to activate the visual cortex of the brain, and stimulate the retina and optic nerve. Acupuncture points for macular degeneration are mostly located along the eyebrows, hands, feet and ankles (not in the eyes).

For added benefit, acupuncture is often combined with Chinese herbal medicine, nutrition, lifestyle changes, and natural supplements to address the many factors involved in macular degeneration.

Looking Beyond the Eyes

One of the things I appreciate most about Traditional Chinese Medicine is that we don't treat everyone with the same diagnosis in the same way.

Two people may both have macular degeneration, yet their underlying patterns of imbalance can be very different.

Rather than focusing only on the eyes, we evaluate the health of the entire person to determine which body systems may need additional support.

In Chinese medicine, we assess each patient to identify their unique patterns of dysfunction to treat the underlying cause of their macular degeneration. The 3 most common patterns seen in macular degneration patients involve the Heart, Liver, and Kidneys/adrenals.

Heart-type macular degeneration

Heart disease and macular degeneration often go hand-in-hand because your eyes rely on good blood flow (pumped from your heart) for nourishment, healthy function, and clear vision.

Many patients with macular degeneration have vascular problems and have a history of hypertension, high cholesterol, blood clots, or other cardiovascular diseases. Drusen (yellowish waste products that develop in the eyes of patients with macular degeneration) are very similar to cholesterol buildup and plaque in the arteries in patients with heart disease.

Treatment of this type is focused on improving blood flow to the eyes and Heart, and breaking down the drusen. For wet macular degeneration, Chinese herbs can be effective in helping to stop the bleeding.

Liver-type macular degeneration

In Chinese medicine, most eye diseases are correlated with a dysfunction of the liver.

Excessive use of drugs, alcohol, and pharmaceutical medications all negatively affect the liver function and side-effects may include vision loss due to the drying nature of these substances. Macular degeneration can also occur in menopausal women as hormone levels decline, leading to increased demand on the liver.

Chronic stress, frustration, resentment, anger and/or irritablity can also affect the Liver, making patients more prone to eye disorders. This type of macular degeneration can be improved by focusing on stress management, diet, and lifestyle changes, with acupuncture and herbal medicine treatments to support liver function and restore moisture and nutrition to the eyes.

Kidney-type macular degeneration

The Kidneys/adrenals can become overtaxed by excessive amounts of stress, overwork, excessive sexual activity, and/or lack of sleep. Your adrenal function declines as you age and can prematurely decline by the factors just mentioned. This type of macular degeneration is either age-related or due to premature aging affecting the eyes, causing a decline in vision.

When this pattern is identified, treatment focuses on supporting healthy aging, restoring vitality, and nourishing the body through acupuncture, herbal medicine, nutrition, and lifestyle modifications.

Because chronic stress affects overall health, functional testing may sometimes be recommended when clinically appropriate to better understand factors influencing a patient's well-being.

A Personalized Treatment Plan

No two patients experience macular degeneration in exactly the same way, so treatment should always be individualized.

My comprehensive macular degeneration program typically includes a series of acupuncture treatments combined with nutritional counseling, lifestyle recommendations, and personalized Chinese herbal medicine or nutritional supplements when appropriate.

The number of treatments varies depending on each person's overall health, the type and severity of macular degeneration, and their treatment goals.

Specialized Care for Eye Health

Dr. Stephanie Bartolotti, DACM, AP holds a doctorate in Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine and has completed advanced training in MicroAcupuncture 48 for eye diseases under internationally recognized ophthalmology and acupuncture educator Dr. Andy Rosenfarb.

If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with macular degeneration and would like to explore a complementary, whole-body approach alongside conventional eye care, we'd be honored to help.