To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Title: Neovascularisation Migrates to Fellow Eye at Same Rate Regardless of Treatment Choice: Presented at ARVO URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/22051E.htm Doctor's Guide April 29, 2008
By Cameron E. Johnston FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla -- April 29, 2008 -- A well-documented risk with choroidal neovascularisation (CNV) resulting from age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is that in time, the CNV will spread to the fellow eye, eventually leaving the patient with impaired vision in both eyes. A major question for physicians and patients has been how -- or whether -- the spread of the CNV to the fellow eye can be prevented or slowed. Investigators now report that there is no difference in the time to progression from unilateral to bilateral disease among patients who are treated with verteporfin photodynamic therapy (PDT) or the more expensive vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitors, bevacizumab and ranibizumab. The researchers presented these results in a poster presentation here on April 27 at the Annual Meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO 2008). According to Irene Barbazetto, MD, Fellow, Department of Ophthalmology, Columbia University, New York, New York, 5% to 8% of patients with choroidal neovascularisation secondary to age-related macular degeneration will develop CNV in the fellow eye within a year of diagnosis. By the second year, 15% will have CNV in both eyes, and by the end of 5 years, 45% will have CNV in both eyes. Dr. Barbazettos and colleagues conducted a review of the charts from 219 patients who were treated with intravitreal ranibizumab or bevacizumab, and 120 patients who received PDT and were used as the control group. There were no differences in baseline patient characteristics or lesion characteristics in the 2 groups. Results of the analysis showed that after 1 year, the risk of developing CNV in the fellow eye was 0.06 for patients receiving anti-VEGF therapy and 0.05 for patients treated with PDT. Over a 2-year period, Kaplan-Meier analysis indicated the probability of the disease spreading to the fellow eye to be 0.22 among patients receiving a VEGF inhibitor and 0.19 among patients treated with PDT. "This means the anti-VEGF therapies may not reduce the risk of developing CNV in the fellow eye any more than the PDT does," Dr. Barbazetto said. It was interesting to note that the rate at which the disease spread to the fellow eye was lower than has been seen in historical controls, including data from the Age-Related Eye Disease Study. [Presentation title: Risk for Choroidal Neovascularization in the Fellow Eye of Patients on Anti-VEGF Therapy for Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration. Poster A565] --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 1999 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of P\S\L content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of P\S\L. P\S\L shall not be liable for any errors, omissions or delays in this content or any other content on its sites, newsletters or other publications, nor for any decisions or actions taken in reliance on such content. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This news story was printed from *Doctor's Guide to the Internet* located at http://www.docguide.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to News Story Page This site is maintained by webmaster@pslgroup.com Please contact us with any comments, problems or bugs. All contents Copyright (c) 1998 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved.