AGE-RELATED MACULAR DEGENERATION
degeneration. She asks which of the available medicines would be best for her.
Age-related macular degeneration is the leading cause of blindness in Americans
of European descent who are 55 years of age and older.
macular degeneration, wet and dry. The dry form, affecting about 85% of patients,
develops as a result of the breakdown of light-sensitive cells in the macula.
most common symptom associated with dry macular degeneration is blurred vision.
In this situation, details (e.g., faces, words in a book) are seen less clearly. Wet
macular degeneration occurs in 15% of patients and is the more serious form,
responsible for the most cases of vision loss. One of the first symptoms of wet
macular degeneration is the appearance of straight lines as wavy. Wet macular
degeneration is associated with abnormal growth of blood vessels behind the retina,
known as choroidal neovascularization. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)
is associated with the pathogenesis of choroidal
neovascularization. VEGF may stimulate neovascularization by influencing
endothelial cell proliferation, vascular permeability, and ocular inflammation.
correlation between VEGF and wet age-related macular degeneration has led to
interest in VEGF inhibitors (pegaptanib, bevacizumab, ranibizumab) as treatment
Pegaptanib inhibits angiogenesis, decreases permeability of the vascular bed, and
decreases inflammation. The efficacy of pegaptanib has been evaluated in two
concurrent, prospective, randomized, double-blind trials involving 1,208 patients. A
total of 1,190 patients received at least one study treatment, with four subjects being
excluded from the efficacy analysis owing to insufficient assessment of visual acuity
at baseline. A combined analysis of 1,186 patients at week 54 showed a statistically
significant reduction in vision loss associated with pegaptanib, realized as early as
week 6 and continued through week 54.
173 The FDA-approved dose of pegaptanib
(0.3 mg intravenously every 6 weeks) is no less effective than 1- or 3-mg doses, and
the most serious injection-related adverse events were endophthalmitis (12 patients),
traumatic injury to the lens (five patients), and retinal detachment (six patients).
Patients should be monitored for elevations in IOP after injection; increases in IOP
have been seen within 30 minutes of injection and should be monitored within 2 to 7
Bevacizumab is a recombinant humanized monoclonal immunoglobulin G1 antibody
approved for intravenous use for first- or second-line treatment of metastatic
colorectal cancer. This product has been used off-label via the intravenous and
intravitreal routes for the treatment of neovascular ocular disorders in more than
Intravenous bevacizumab 5 mg/kg was administered every 2 weeks
for two or three infusions in 18 patients for whom 12- and 24-week results on
subfoveal choroidal neovascularization were published separately. Therapy was
associated with improved visual acuity. No serious ocular or systemic adverse
effects were noted, although a statistically significant increase in blood pressure was
noted at week 3. Nineteen published, uncontrolled case series studies have evaluated
the use of intravitreal bevacizumab for the treatment of wet macular degeneration as
well as other conditions associated with neovascularization. The most common
intravitreal dose was 1.25 mg, usually administered every 4 to 6 weeks. Doses could
be repeated if signs of progression occurred. The longest period of study for
intravitreal use was 1 year. The majority of patients in these open-label trials were
followed up for 3 months. Mean visual acuity improved, and no serious ocular
Ranibizumab is a Fab fragment of bevacizumab approved in June 2006 for the
intravitreal treatment of wet macular degeneration. Ranibizumab is approximately
one-third the size of bevacizumab. Its size may facilitate retinal penetration after
intravitreal injection. Ranibizumab has a shorter-systemic half-life and higher VEGF
binding affinity than bevacizumab, but bevacizumab has two binding sites per
molecule versus one for ranibizumab. The clinical relevance of these
pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic differences is not known.
recommended dosage of ranibizumab is 0.5 mg via the intravitreal route administered
every 4 weeks. This treatment has been associated with maintenance or improvement
of vision for 12 to 24 months.
173 The primary ocular side effects associated with
ranibizumab administration include conjunctival hemorrhage, eye pain, and increased
Bevacizumab is significantly less expensive than ranibizumab. Similar efficacy
associated with lower cost may lead to increased use for neovascular age-related
macular degeneration. The National Eye Institute has initiated the Comparisons of
Age-Related Macular Degeneration Treatments Trials, a multicenter, randomized
In September 2012, aflibercept became the second VEGF inhibitor approved for
treatment of macular edema secondary to choroidal vein retinal occlusion (CRVO).
Preliminary results from the ongoing COPERNICUS and GALILEO trials proved the
efficacy of this medication in treating macular edema secondary to CRVO. Of the
combined 358 patients studied in COPERNICUS and GALILEO, 56% and 60%,
respectively, of the patients receiving aflibercept 2 mg monthly achieved at least a
15-letter improvement in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) from baseline over 6
months compared with just 12% and 22% in the control group (p < 0.01 for both).
Additionally, in COPERNICUS and GALILEO, patients achieved a 21.3- and 14.7-
letter improvement, respectively, in BCVA compared with placebo ( p < 0.01 for
While efficacy and safety appear similar to other anti-VEGF treatments, the higher
potency, binding affinity, and duration of action make aflibercept an appealing new
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