This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Anti-VEGF may be effective for polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy
Am J Ophthalmol. 2010;150(5):674-682.
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
Ranibizumab therapy improved vision and decreased exudative changes in eyes with polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy, a study found.
In the prospective, consecutive case series, 50 eyes of 50 patients with previously untreated symptomatic polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV) received one intravitreal injection of 0.5 mg of Lucentis (ranibizumab, Genentech) monthly for 3 months.
According to the study, mean logMAR visual acuity improved from 0.25 to 0.38 at 3 months follow-up. Nineteen eyes improved by 0.3 or more logMAR units, and five eyes showed a decrease in visual acuity of 0.3 or more logMAR units.
Polypoidal lesions decreased or disappeared in 39 eyes but were unchanged or worsened in 11 eyes.
In addition, a branching vascular network remained in the 48 eyes that had a network at baseline. While the networks resolved or decreased diameter in 11 eyes, they were unchanged or worse in 37 eyes, the study said.
"The branching vascular networks associated with PCV may have the characteristics of choroidal vessels, which should be associated with a poor response to anti-VEGF therapy," the study authors said. "Long-term follow-up is necessary to determine the efficacy of ranibizumab therapy for PCV."