I am sorry to hear about your mom. I am surprised that more Tuggers have not responded in that (I believe) macular degeneration is the leading cause of blindness. It is fairly common in the older population. My mother had it and knew many others that did also.
A small bit of good news is that she will not go completely blind. What she will lose is any ability to finely discriminate what she sees in front of her. That means she will not be able to distinguish faces, read, etc. She will know that there is a large object in front of her (a chair) that she needs to navigate around, etc.
Those who have responded that their parents have improved (via shots in the eye, etc.) are talking about the wet kind. There is no known cure for the dry kind. While one should always hold out hope for a miricle breakthrough, it is probably also important to be realistic and accept the fact that the disease will run its course. (My opinion.)
Two things that might help your mother in dealing with the disease. The first one is fairly expensive. They make special magnifier readers for people with macular degeneration. They are basically a table area on which you put an object with something akin to a computer screen above the table that shows a magnified image of what was placed on the table. While it did not allow my mother to read books or anything like that, for quite a while she could use the screen to read bills, make out checks, get a better idea of what was in a family photo, etc. This allowed her to keep more of a sense of independence for a longer period of time. (Eventually, her vision was bad enough that the magnifier became less and less useful.)
Secondly, if your mother at all likes to read, the federal government has a special program with books (and a few magazines) on tape. At no cost, you are sent a special tape playing machine. (The machines look like something from fifty years ago - clumsy looking yellow plastic machines.) Once you have the machine, you can order a wide variety of books on tape. The tapes can only be played on this special machine. They are constantly updating their library with a catalogue of new listings sent out either monthly or bimonthly. (At first, she will probably be able to read the catalogue with the magnifier, but eventually she will need someone's help.)
None of this is wonderful news, but, believe me, neither your mother nor you (as an offspring who needs to help an elderly parent) are alone.
Best wishes.
PS: There is some thought that Lutein and anti-oxidents might slow the pace that the degeneration takes, but the evidence is very thin. Still, there is no harm in taking these. Lutein is now added to most if not all the multi-vitamins for seniors. To be honest, with my family history, the slim possibility that these ingredients might help is the only reason that I take a multi-vitamin. I figure, what the heck, what do I have to lose.
