Same-day administration of AMD drugs

It is possible to administer verteporfin PDT (Visudyne) and ranibizumab (Lucentis) on the same day without adverse events, according to study results published in the December issue of the British Journal of Ophthalmology.

Professor Ursula Schmidt-Erfurth of the Universitätsklinik für Augenheilkunde und Optometrie at the University of Vienna, Austria and colleagues conducted a prospective, open-label, multicentre study, treating patients suffering from classic or occult CNV secondary to AMD with standard fluence verteporfin at baseline and months three, six and nine, and with ranibizumab 0.5 mg at baseline and months one, two and three.

At nine months, no severe vision loss from either inflammation or uveitis had occurred. There were cases of mild/moderate ocular adverse events, but no systemic adverse events. The mean BCVA improved by 6.9 letters at four months and by 2.4 letters at nine months: at this point, lesions were inactive, and all macular oedema and subretinal fluid had resolved.

The researchers concluded that same-day administration of verteporfin and ranibizumab was a safe and effective treatment for CNV.