Good lifetime vision outcomes achieved with anti-VEGF treatment in nAMD

Good lifetime vision outcomes were achieved in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) treated with anti–vascular endothelial growth factor, especially with more injections and an earlier start, according to a study in JAMA Ophthalmology.

In this multistate model, the real-world cohort data of 3192 patients with nAMD treated with intravitreal anti-VEGF tat the treating physician’s discretion were included.

Approximately 12% of patients retained driving visual acuity for the mean remaining lifetime of 11 years. Approximately 15% retained reading visual acuity in at least 1 eye during this same time period. At that time, an estimated 82% of the sample had dropped out.

Patients who were younger at baseline and those who had more injections during the first year of treatment were more likely to have better long-term outcomes.

“This is a remarkable outcome compared with outcomes without intervention, which lead to legal blindness within 3 years of disease onset in 80% of those affected,” the authors concluded. “These findings underline the public health necessity of providing anti-VEGF treatment to persons in need.”

Reference
Finger RP, Puth M, Schmid M, et al. Lifetime outcomes of anti–vascular endothelial growth factor treatment for neovascular age-related macular degeneration. JAMA Ophthalmol. 2020;doi:10.1001/jamaophthalmol.2020.3989