Aflibercept boosts BCVA in DME

Patients with diabetic macular oedema (DME) who received aflibercept injection (EYLEA, Bayer HealthCare) demonstrated a significantly greater improvement in mean change in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) from baseline at 52 weeks compared to those who received either bevacizumab or ranibizumab.

That was the top-line result shared with study investigators in the Diabetic Retinopathy Clinical Research Network (DRCR.net) comparative effectiveness study. DRCR.net is in the process of finalizing and verifying the data prior to submission for publication.

Other findings:

• The median number of injections using the protocol-specified retreatment regimen was one fewer in patients treated with aflibercept compared to bevacizumab and ranibizumab.
• Fewer patients in the afibercept group received criteria-based macular laser treatments than those treated with bevacizumab and ranibizumab.
• The rates of most ocular and systemic adverse events were similar across the three study groups.

• The rates of arterial thromboembolic events (non-fatal stroke, non-fatal myocardial infarction, and vascular death) in the trial were 2% in the aflibercept group, 4% in the bevacizumab group and 5% in the ranibizumab group.

The independent, US National Institutes of Health-sponsored Diabetic Retinopathy Clinical Research Network study was designed to compare three anti-VEGF therapies for the treatment of DME. It enrolled 660 patients who were randomized to receive either aflibercept 2 mg, bevacizumab 1.25 mg, or ranibizumab 0.3 mg dosed according to a protocol-specified algorithm. Mean change in BCVA from baseline at 52 weeks was the study's primary endpoint.

Full details of the protocol can be found at www.drcr.net