A 67-year-old male reports difficulty recognizing faces and reading, but his peripheral vision is intact. On examination, drusen and areas of atrophy are observed in the macula. What could be the potential cause?
This patient's symptoms of difficulty recognizing faces and reading, while still maintaining peripheral vision, along with the presence of drusen and areas of atrophy in the macula, suggest a diagnosis of dry (atrophic) age-related macular degeneration. This is the most common form of AMD and involves the slow deterioration of the macula over time.