Are you feeling depleted from your vision worries, especially with a diagnosis of dry macular degeneration jeopardizing your daily freedom? Do you see words “floating” on a page? Are faces fuzzy in low light? Is driving no longer a safe option?
This silent deterioration of your central vision weighs on your emotions. For years, physicians have had no treatment options and were forced to watch as your retinal cells faded away.
Now, a proven, painless light therapy reawakens these failing cells, protecting your sharp vision. You don’t need to live with the fear of continued vision loss.
Here’s how Valeda Light Therapy works at the cellular level to stimulate your eyes, who is a candidate for treatment, and how to protect your visual future.
What Is Dry AMD?
Before we get into how this light therapy can help, let’s first discuss the disease at its root. Let’s delve into how dry macular degeneration breaks down your vision-critical cells in your retina over time.
Dry age-related macular degeneration is an eye condition that deteriorates over time and impacts the vision of millions of Americans over 50. In dry AMD, protein clusters, known as drusen, appear as yellow deposits beneath your retina.
These drusen gradually rob the macula cells, your vision cells that are essential for your sharp, focused vision, of oxygen and nutrients.
Eventually, these macula cells begin to atrophy and die off, leaving you with irreparable blind spots in your line of vision.
What Is Valeda Light Therapy?
With the way the damage in dry macular degeneration happens understood, we can finally talk about what to do about it! Let’s explore the first non-invasive technology that turns that cell damage on its head.
Valeda Light Therapy is a non-invasive light therapy that restores vision for people with dry macular degeneration. This FDA-cleared system delivers targeted light waves to your eyes.
Photobiomodulation therapy is a medication-, needle-, and surgery-free way to repair cells, reduce inflammation, and preserve your vision.
How Does Valeda Light Therapy Work?
Now, you’re probably wondering how this treatment actually works. In other words, you need to understand the science behind how each light color heals your retina.
The Valeda Light Delivery System works by addressing the malfunctioning energy factories inside your retinal cells. These “factories” are your mitochondria – the organelles responsible for producing the energy your cells need to survive. In dry AMD, these factories malfunction, causing your retinal cells to weaken and die.
Valeda combats this by using safe light waves to reignite those failing factories. The device beams three specific wavelengths of light directly into your eyes: yellow light (590 nm), red light (660 nm), and near-infrared light (850 nm).
When these particular wavelengths of light interact with the key enzyme cytochrome c oxidase in your mitochondria, it is stimulated, boosting energy, blood flow, and overall retinal health while reducing stress.
Who Is A Candidate For Valeda?
Now, this cell stimulation sounds really exciting, but it isn’t for everyone. Let’s break down which type of dry AMD patients are the best fit for this new form of light therapy.
Valeda is approved by the FDA only for adults with early- and intermediate-stage dry AMD. For the best candidacy, the vision in your better eye should be between 20/32 and 20/70. You also need to be diagnosed with dry AMD based on the dry AMD deposits or drusen you’ve developed.
Unfortunately, Valeda can’t be used by people with wet AMD or geographic atrophy of the macula. You also can’t use it if you have light sensitivity or a history of migraines or seizures triggered by light.
The Valeda Treatment Protocol: What To Expect
If you’re a good candidate for Valeda therapy, then you’ll want to know what to expect as you start your sessions. Let’s walk through the logistics of the treatment plan.
The typical Valeda treatment involves nine short, painless treatments per eye, over a span of three to five weeks. You will need to complete the whole course every four months to continue improving your vision.
Your treatments in our office take about 15 minutes in total, with the actual light therapy for each eye under 5 minutes. The procedure doesn’t require dilation, eye drops, or downtime, and all you have to do is look at the safe, colored lights at the technician’s direction.
You’ll probably see an afterimage, similar to the one you get from staring into a camera flash. Don’t worry, it fades quickly within a few minutes, and you can immediately get back to your daily life.
Recovery And Prognosis
After your 9 treatments, you’ll start to notice a visible difference in your vision in your daily life. Let’s look at what clinical trials show about the lasting visual benefits of this therapy.
According to clinical trials, including the significant LIGHTSITE III trial, Valeda patients had phenomenal visual results. Over half of the treated eyes experienced improved vision, with patients on average seeing five or more letters better on the eye chart. That means you’re literally reading an entire line lower!
Plus, Valeda treatment reduced or stabilized drusen, which halts the progression of dry AMD. To ensure your best results, you need to commit to the retreatment schedule, which occurs every four months.
Schedule Your Consultation Today
The most powerful way to safeguard your visual independence is to be proactive today! Here’s how you can set up your vision evaluation:
Don’t leave your vision to fate. At Retina Vitreous Associates of Florida, our talented specialists use the new FDA-approved Valeda Light Delivery System to activate your retinal cells to preserve your visual independence. Don’t wait until you lose your passion for your favorite pastime or your freedom in your everyday routine to Dry Macular Degeneration!
Now is the time to take advantage of your chance to save your sight. Schedule your complete dilated eye exam today with our top retinal specialists to learn how photobiomodulation can preserve your vision. Don’t delay; visit our exclusive Valeda treatment page now to reserve your vision’s future!
At Retina Vitreous Associates of Florida, we’re dedicated to offering the highest standard of retina care and keeping your vision in excellent condition for all your years to come.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. Is Valeda Light Therapy Safe For Your Eyes?
Yes. It is – entirely – safe and non-invasive. Scientific clinical studies have shown there are no serious risks associated with this light-based treatment, and people can complete their quick treatments with no pain, no meds, no needles, and no recovery time.
2. Does Valeda Light Therapy Cure Dry AMD?
It’s not a cure for dry AMD, because sadly, there’s no cure. But it’s a treatment that activates cellular repair, slows vision loss, and eventually brightens your central vision and enhances contrast sensitivity.
3. Can Valeda Treat Wet AMD?
No, Valeda does not treat wet AMD. In fact, this cutting-edge light therapy only works for those with early to mid-stage dry AMD. Patients who have wet AMD will need other forms of treatment, such as anti-VEGF injections, to block abnormal blood vessels in their eyes from leaking and bleeding.