Real life visual and anatomic outcomes of aflibercept treatment for treatment-naive patients with exudative age-related macular degeneration

Anti-VEGF therapies have revolutionized the treatment of neovascular age-relatedmacular degeneration (AMD). Purpose. - The goal of this study was to evaluate the "real life'' visual and anatomical outcomes of aflibercept treatment for treatment-naive patients with exudative AMD. Methods. - This was a retrospective study of patients treated with aflibercept in the department of Ophthalmology at the University Hospital of Bordeaux between November 2013 and July2015. The follow-up period varied from 3 months to 2 years. All patients received an induction phase with 3 monthly intravitreal injections (IVT) followed by personalized monitoring. ETDRS best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), fundus examination and OCT were performed at each visit. Data were collected at day 0, 3 months, 6, 9, 12 months, 18 and 24 months. Results. - Forty-three eyes of forty patients, mean age 77.7 years, were included, with a minimum of 3 months follow-up. Twenty-five eyes were followed for 1 year; 5 eyes for two years. At baseline, the mean BCVA was 55.7 letters. Patients received 7.5 injections on average the first year and 2.6 the 2nd year. The mean gain of visual acuity was (+)7.3 letters at 3 months, (+)6.2 letters at 12 months, and (+)6.8 letters at 2 years. Anatomically, the OCT data showed a decline of all parameters. The central macular thickness decreased by 118.3 mu m at 3 months, 136.4 mu m at 12 months and 65.5 mu m at 2 years. Conclusion. - Aflibercept can achieve effective visual and anatomical outcomes with results, which approach the pivotal studies, despite the use of personalized protocols and longer monitoring intervals. (C) 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.