According to the National Institutes of Health, there are just over 2 million people in America who have age-related macular degeneration. They also project that by 2030 there will be over 3.6 million people with the eye disease. One of the most common treatments people who have it are talked into are injections, which is a practice that one eye care expert says is doing more harm than good.
“So many people have been what I believe to be bullied into getting injections for their wet macular degeneration,” explains Dr. Edward Kondrot, founder of the Healing The Eye & Wellness Center. He is also the immediate past president of the Arizona Homeopathic and Integrative Medical Association, and the clinic director of Integrative Medicine of the American Medical College of Homeopathy. “Yet they will go on to experience even more problems as a result. It’s really a money-making conspiracy that is being peddled to the people who have this disease.”
Referring to it as the “Watergate of Eye Care,” Dr. Kondrot has been actively trying to reach out to those with the disease to help provide them with the information they need. He shares with them a recent research study conducted by the University of Pennsylvania that shows over 18 percent of patients receiving injections will develop a very serious complication, called Retinal Atrophy.
Additional issues surrounding the treatment include a manipulation of data, a cover up of the alarming side effects, and pay-offs for using the drug. Side effects of the Anti-VEGF drug used in the injections include stroke, heart attack, angina, hemorrhage, hypertension, and sepsis.
Dr. Kondrot shares that the good news is there are safe and effective alternatives to the injections. At his Center he has helped many people with effective treatments for macular degeneration which do not come with harmful side effects.
“The unfortunate part is that the majority of people who have this disease simply do not know about the side effects of these treatments they are usually pushed into,” adds Dr. Kondrot. “There are safer alternatives available; it’s just a matter of knowing they exist so each person can make a more informed choice when it comes to their treatment options.”