Wet Age-related Macular Degeneration (Wet AMD) Epidemiology

Key Highlights

• Wet Age-related Macular Degeneration (Wet AMD) is a type of AMD which is characterized by abrupt central vision loss caused by abnormal blood vessels that bleed or leak fluid which may swell and damage the macula.
• Wet AMD also referred to as neovascular AMD, accounts for roughly 10% of AMD cases, but almost 90% of AMD-related central vision loss. Although 80% of the patients have non-neovascular, or atrophic AMD, the neovascular form of the disease is responsible for nearly 90% of the severe, central visual acuity loss associated with AMD.
• In the year 2024, the total prevalent cases of AMD were 70,128,294 cases in the 7MM.
• In 2024, the total diagnosed prevalent cases of wet AMD were 3,628,564 in the 7MM.
• In the 7MM, the total Stage-specific cases of AMD were 64,437,996 cases of Early & Intermediate AMD and 5,690,298 cases of Late stage AMD, respectively in the year 2024.
• In the United States, among late-onset cases of AMD, 55% are neovascular AMD (exudative or wet AMD), while 45% are geographic atrophy (GA).
• According to DelveInsight analysis, EU4 and the UK accounted for 1,529,734 AMD diagnosed prevalent cases of wet AMD in the year 2024.

DelveInsight’s “Wet Age-related Macular Degeneration (Wet AMD)– Epidemiology Forecast – 2034” report delivers an in-depth understanding of wet AMD, historical and forecasted epidemiology in the United States, EU4 (Germany, France, Italy, and Spain) and the United Kingdom, and Japan.

The table given below further depicts the key segments provided in the report:

Wet Age-related Macular Degeneration (Wet AMD) Understanding and Diagnosis

Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) is a common irreversible sight-threatening disease characterized by progressive degeneration of the central retina, preferentially involving the retinal photoreceptors, the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), the Bruch’s membrane (BM), or the choroidal microcirculation in the macular region. Depending on the degree of disease severity, patients perceive different decreases in their quality of life. In addition to the harmful effects on patients’ quality of life, treatment of AMD causes high economic costs. By 1965, the terminology of AMD was becoming more and more accepted. AMD is classified into three clinical stages: early, intermediate, and advanced AMD. The presence of drusen (>63 and ≤125 µm in diameter) is the earliest clinical feature of early AMD, which impairs the patient’s ability to dark adaptation during the transition from high to low illumination environments. Most central visual loss occurs in the intermediate and advanced stages of AMD. Advanced AMD includes two categories: Geographic Atrophy (GA) and Wet/Neovascular AMD. Geographic atrophy is characterized by slowly progressive deterioration of the RPE, photoreceptor layer, and choroidal capillaries in the macula, leading to progressive vision loss over several years. Wet/Neovascular AMD, also known as exudative AMD, is characterized by the invasion of new immature choroidal vessels breaking through the BM into the retina, causing exudates, hemorrhages, and detachment of the RPE or retina. This disease form causes more rapid progressive loss of vision than geographic atrophy.

Currently, multimodal imaging is recommended to assess the presence and progression of geographic atrophy. Among these modalities, optical coherence tomography (OCT) has proven to be a useful tool to identify biomarkers associated with its progression in patients with intermediate AMD (iAMD), as well as evaluate the macula and quantify geographic atrophy lesions. In recent years, there has been an increased interest in identifying OCT biomarkers in iAMD that correlate with progression to advanced AMD. This is mainly due to the fact that individuals with iAMD in at least one eye are estimated to be 18 times more likely to develop advanced AMD compared to those without drusen. OCT plays a crucial role in this context as it enables the visualization and measurement of drusen, which are the hallmark lesions in AMD. Drusen can be classified based on their size: small (< 63 μm), intermediate (> 63 μm), and large (> 125 μm). The size and number of drusen have been associated with a higher risk of progression from iAMD to geographic atrophy. Notably, individuals with a drusen volume exceeding 0.03 mm3 are over 4 times more likely to develop geographic atrophy within 2 years compared to those with smaller drusen

Wet Age-related Macular Degeneration (Wet AMD) Epidemiology

The wet AMD epidemiology chapter in the report provides historical as well as forecasted epidemiology segmented by Total Prevalent Cases of AMD, Total Prevalent Cases of wet AMD, Total Diagnosed Prevalent Cases of Wet AMD, and Age-specific Cases of Wet AMD in the United States, EU4 countries (Germany, France, Italy, and Spain) and the United Kingdom, and Japan from 2021 to 2034.

• In 2024, the United States accounted for the largest share of prevalent AMD cases among the 7MM, representing 32% of the total.
• In the United States, the total age-specific cases of wet AMD were 95,771, 405,386, and 473,607 in the ≤64 years, 65-84 years, and 85+ years of age groups, respectively, in 2024.
• In 2024, the total diagnosed prevalent cases of wet AMD was 1,529,734 in EU4 and the UK.
• In the EU4 and the UK, late-onset cases of AMD are 61.9% for neovascular AMD and 38.1% for geographic atrophy. In Japan, the split is 93.8% for neovascular AMD and 6.3% for geographic atrophy.

Scope of the Report

• The report covers a segment of key events, an executive summary, and a descriptive overview of wet AMD explaining its causes, signs and symptoms, pathogenesis, and currently available therapies.
• Comprehensive insight into the epidemiology segments and forecasts, the future growth potential of diagnosis rate, and disease progression have been provided.
• A detailed review of current challenges in establishing diagnosis and diagnosis rate is provided.

Wet AMD Report Insights

• Patient Population
• Total Prevalent Cases of AMD, Total Prevalent Cases of wet AMD, Total Diagnosed Prevalent Cases of Wet AMD, and Age-specific Cases of Wet AMD.
• Country-wise Epidemiology Distribution

Wet AMD Report Key Strengths

• Ten-year Forecast
• The 7MM Coverage 
• Wet AMD Epidemiology Segmentation

Wet AMD Report Assessment

Epidemiology Segmentation

Current Diagnostic Practices

FAQs

Epidemiology Insights

• What are the disease risks, burdens, and unmet needs of wet AMD? What will be the growth opportunities across the 7MM with respect to the patient population pertaining to wet AMD?
• What is the historical and forecasted Wet AMD patient pool in the United States, EU4 (Germany, France, Italy, Spain) and the United Kingdom, and Japan?
• What is the diagnostic pattern of wet AMD?
• Which clinical factors will affect wet AMD?
• Which factors will affect the increase in the diagnosis of wet AMD?

Reasons to buy

• Insights on disease burden, details regarding diagnosis, and factors contributing to the change in the epidemiology of the disease during the forecast years.
• To understand the change in wet AMD cases in varying geographies over the coming years.
• A detailed overview of Total Prevalent Cases of AMD, Total Prevalent Cases of wet AMD, Total Diagnosed Prevalent Cases of Wet AMD, and Age-specific Cases of Wet AMD is included.
• To understand the perspective of key opinion leaders around the current challenges with establishing the diagnosis and insights on the treatment-eligible patient pool.
• Detailed insights on various factors hampering disease diagnosis and other existing diagnostic challenges.