title: [Two-year results following photodynamic therapy for age-related macular degeneration].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the visual outcome 2 years after photodynamic therapy (PDT) in patients with exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV).
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty-six eyes undergoing PDT were retrospectively studied. Seventeen eyes of AMD (AMD group) and nineteen eyes of PCV (PCV group) were evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In the AMD group, the mean pre-PDT visual acuity was 0.19. The mean post-PDT visual acuity was 0.16 two years after the PDT. Two years after PDT, the Log MAR visual acuity improved by 0.2 or more in 3 eyes (17.7%), but it decreased by 0.2 or more in 4 eyes (23.5%). In the PCV group, the mean pre-PDT visual acuity was 0.34. The mean post-PDT visual acuity was 0.20 two years after PDT. The Log MAR visual acuity improved by 0.2 or more in 5 eyes (26.3%), but it decreased by 0.2 or more in 7 eyes (36.8%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this series of patients, more than half of the two groups were able to maintain their visual acuity for 2 years after PDT. Although the average visual acuity of the AMD group was worse than that of the PCV group, the AMD group was able to maintain their visual acuity for 2 years after PDT. The average visual acuity of the PCV group decreased 2 years after PDT.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Shinshu University School of Medicine, 3-1-1 Asahi, Matsumoto-shi, Nagano-ken 390-8621, Japan. tyanagi@shinshu-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Tomoko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yanagidaira
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Arai
authors.forename: Noriko
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yoshida
authors.forename: Satoko
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Arai
authors.forename: Emi
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fukui
authors.forename: Hiroki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Imai
authors.forename: Tomoko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sugimoto
authors.forename: Sachiko
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Toshinori
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Murata
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008268:Macular Degeneration / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010778:Photochemotherapy; D017319:Photosensitizing Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014792:Visual Acuity
chemical_list: D017319:Photosensitizing Agents