EyeWorld is the official news magazine of the American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgery.
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DME, said Peter A. Campochiaro, MD, Eccles professor of ophthalmol- ogy and neuroscience, Johns Hop- kins University School of Medicine, Baltimore. AKB-9778 is a small molecule, s elective, competitive inhibitor of vascular endothelial tyrosine phos- phatase that promotes phosphoryla- tion of Tie2; it blocks VEGF-induced leakage from dermal and retinal ves- sels. The compound promotes vascu- lar stability through enhanced Tie2 activation, and preliminary studies suggest subcutaneous injections for o ne month are safe and provide bio- logic activity in patients with DME, he said. Pathologic myopia Verteporfin photodynamic therapy is currently the only approved treat- ment for pathologic myopia, but Kyoko Ohno-Matsui, MD, associate professor of ophthalmology, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, said the anti-VEGF agents may be effec- tive. The MYRROR study evaluated intravitreal aflibercept 2.0 mg in patients with myopic choroidal neo- vascularization, randomized 3:1 at baseline to aflibercept or sham. Patients were evaluated every four weeks, and the aflibercept group re- ceived treatment at that time if there was disease recurrence. At week 24, the mean letter gain was 12.1 in the aflibercept group vs. two letters in the sham group. A greater propor- tion of those treated with aflibercept gained more than three lines from baseline (38.9%) compared to those in the sham group (9.7%). EW Editors' note: This article was derived from presentations at the 2013 American Academy of Ophthalmology meeting, and the content has not been reviewed by the individual speakers. Dr. Regillo has financial interests with Abbott Medical Optics (Santa Ana, Calif.) and Alcon (Fort Worth, Texas). D r. Ohno-Matsui has no related finan- cial interests. Dr. Campochiaro has financial interests with Advanced Cell Technology (Marlborough, Mass.), Aerpio (Blue Ash, Ohio), Elan (Dublin), Gene Signal (Lausanne, Switzerland), Genentech (San Francisco), Genzyme (Washington, D.C.), GlaxoSmithKline (Brentford, U.K.), Norvox, Oxford BioMedica (Oxford, U.K.), and Regeneron (Tarrytown, N.Y.). Dr. Ho has financial interests with Alcon, Allergan (Irvine, Calif.), Endo Optiks (Little Silver, N.J.), Genentech, Janssen (Titusville, N.J.), Merck (Whitehouse Station, N.J.), the National Eye Insti- tute/National Institutes of Health (Bethesda, Md.), Ophthotech (New York), PRN (Plymouth Meeting, Pa.), Regeneron, Second Sight (Sylmar, Calif.), and Thrombogenics (Leuven, Belgium). 136-137 Retina_EW March 2014-DL_Layout 1 3/6/14 4:15 PM Page 137