title: Three-year visual outcome and injection frequency of intravitreal ranibizumab therapy for neovascular age-related macular degeneration.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  To assess the 3-year visual outcome and injection frequency for patients on ranibizumab for neovascular age-related macular degeneration (NV-AMD).
  
  
  METHODS
  Retrospective case-note review of 174 treatment-naïve eyes of 156 patients with NV-AMD with 3-year follow-up was done at specific time points closest to 12, 24 and 36 months.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The median baseline visual acuity (VA) of 50 Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study letters (mean 48.2 ± 16.9) improved significantly to 55 (mean 51.2 ± 18.7) by the end of 12 months (p = 0.04). At 24 months, the median letter score remained unchanged at 55 (mean 50.4 ± 20.8; p = 0.14 as compared to baseline) and at 36 months, the median VA was 54 letters (mean 49.1 ± 21.7; p = 0.34 compared to baseline). The mean numbers of injections were 4.8 ± 2.2 at 1 year, 7.8 ± 4.2 at 2 years (2.9 in the second year) and 10.2 ± 6.2 at the end of the third year (2.4 in the third year).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study demonstrates the efficacy of a variable dosing regimen of ranibizumab for the treatment of NV-AMD. The mean gain in VA is inversely proportional to the baseline VA and did not correlate with the number of injections.
authors: Laser and Retinal Research Unit, Department of Ophthalmology, King's College Hospital, London SE5 9RS, UK.
authors: Ramu
authors: R
authors: Muniraju
authors: Jayashree
authors: J
authors: Ramu
authors: Sobha
authors: S
authors: Sivaprasad
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors / Q000008:administration & dosage; D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D058449:Intravitreal Injections; D008268:Macular Degeneration / Q000188:drug therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D000069579:Ranibizumab; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014792:Visual Acuity
chemical_list: D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors; D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; D000069579:Ranibizumab