The therapeutic efficacy of Ginkgo biloba special extract EGb 761 was investigated in a controlled, double-blind trial involving 99 patients with impaired vision due to senile, dry macular degeneration. The primary objective target variable was the change in the corrected visual acuity of the more severely impaired eye at baseline, during a 6-month treatment period with either 240 mg/day (group I = 50 patients) or 60 mg/day (group II = 49 patients) EGb 761. Marked improvement of the study participants’ vision was observed in both treatment groups after 4 weeks, with more pronounced improvements in group I (acuity increased by 0.13 in group I vs. 0.10 in group II after 24 weeks). The fraction of patients with improvement of visual acuity ≥ 0.2 was nearly twice as large in the group treated with 240 mg/day EGb 761 as in patients receiving the lower dosage (P = 0.08). Subjective health impairments, if present, could also be improved during treatment. The investigator rated a favourable tolerability for both dosages of EGb 761.