Figure 1.

Vascular contribution to wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD) pathogenesis. Top image: Healthy macula; Bottom left image: Vascular changes could occur early in disease progression, manifested as a reduction in choriocapillaris density through loss of endothelial cells; Bottom right image: Vasculopathy is also observed in polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy and typical choroidal neovascularization, such as polypoidal/aneurysmal dilations of vessels and arteriosclerotic features. Mechanisms in common vessel wall pathology in polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV) include impaired extracellular matrix production and choroidal vascular hyperpermeability.