Drusen, these yellow or whitish lumps, are deposits of accumulated or waste material. It’s thought to be largely lipids (fats), fatty waste products from the photoreceptor cells, &/or debris from deteriorating tissue. Many different kinds of chemicals and cellular components have been identified in analyzed drusen, so they’re seen as a sort of trash heap.

‘Drusen’ is a German word for stones. It was used because the deposits of matter look like little pebbles.

How and why do macular drusen form? The cause isn’t totally known. It could be largely because as the body’s fine processes (cell transfer, etc) slow down with age, they become less efficient. So waste products don’t get transported away as cleanly.

When drusen appear on or near the macula, it’s a sign of developing macular degeneration eye disease, and a threat to your vision.

If you want to know more detail, there are two sorts of drusen. Soft drusen, which are pale yellow, often large, with indistinct edges, are the dangerous ones. They evolve to macular degeneration. Hard drusen, which are round, yellow, with well-defined edges, tend not to be a problem.

Large drusen cause more disturbance than small ones. Studies show that eyes with large drusen go on to develop severe AMD with vision loss much more often than eyes with small drusen.