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| |  Treatment With Pegaptanib Maintains Gains in Age-Related Macular Degeneration: Presented at ARVO By Ed Susman FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla -- May 11, 2009 -- Treatment with anti-vascular endothelial growth factor receptors (VEGFs) to control oedema in age-related macular degeneration followed by maintenance therapy with pegaptanib enables patients to achieve long-term vision gains, according to research presented here at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) 2009 Annual Meeting. "Pegaptanib therapy has been validated in [more than] 4 years of controlled trial with an excellent safety record," said David S. Dyer, MD, Retina Associates, Kansas City, Missouri, in a presentation on May 4. He noted that induction protocols have been used in treating oncology and transplantation patients and are now being investigated in neovascular age-related macular degeneration. The researchers reviewed charts of 162 patients, 142 of whom received induction treatment with ranibizumab, and 8 of whom were treated with ranibizumab and off-label bevacizumab. Follow-up data on 8 of the patients were missing and not included in the analysis. In the study, patients received intravitreal ranibizumab or bevacizumab until no leakage was seen on fluorescein angiography and/or no fluid on optical coherence tomography. Then, intravitreal pegaptanib 0.3 mg was administered every 6 weeks, with booster treatments of ranibizumab or bevacizumab at the investigator's discretion for worsening macular degeneration. Dr. Dyer reported that, after 1 year, 33% of patients gained >=3 lines of vision, 70% of the group maintained or gained vision, and 89% of patients lost <3 lines of vision. Eighteen patients required anti-VEGF boosters during the course of therapy because of renewed leaking. A 2-year analysis of 105 eligible patients showed that 36% had gained >=3 lines of vision, 70% had maintained or gained vision, and 91% lost <3 lines of vision. "Sequentially combining nonselective and selective VEGF inhibitors might be a valuable therapeutic option, especially for patients at high risk for cardiovascular events," Dr. Dyer said, adding that the study regimen "allows for visual stability with limited use of booster treatments and minimises systemic risk."
[Presentation title: Pegaptanib Maintenance in Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration (NV-AMD) Following Induction Therapy: Results of a Retrospective Case Series. Abstract 1914-A604]
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