What is Cone dystrophy?
The light-sensing cells in the retina come in two main kinds: rods and cones. Rods are extremely sensitive and work better in dim light, whereas cones are more effective in bright light. Cones give us our colour vision and although they exist across the retina, they are densely clustered around the macula.
Cone dystrophy stops the cones working, leading to loss of central and colour vision. People with stationary dystrophy have the same level of sight loss from birth or early childhood. Progressive dystrophy develops later and sight is lost gradually over time. Some people also develop rapid, uncontrolled eye movements (nystagmus) or find that their eyes ‘drift’ or wander. For further information about nystagmus see What is nystagmus?
Further information about cone dystrophy can be found on the Macular Society website.
