Decision Making in Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy Treatment

Review of Studies Comparing Panretinal Photocoagulation and Anti-Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Therapy in the Treatment of Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is among the leading causes of blindness at the global level. A review of studies between 2015 and 2018 found that about 1.7% of the general population with any type of diabetes mellitus suffered from proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR). Since the 1960s, panretinal photocoagulation (PRP) has been the mainstay of treatment for PDR. During this period, PRP has been credited with a significant degree of success and a relatively low complication rate. However, the advent of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) therapy with the beginning of the new millennium provided a treatment modality that was noninferior to PRP. A decade-long period of comparisons and debates between these two treatment modalities repeatedly favored anti-VEGF over PRP, as studies demonstrated that the former provided potentially superior outcomes to PRP. The aim of this review is to briefly discuss and compare the relevant studies and evidence supporting these two treatments.

Fibroblast Growth Factor Type 1 Ameliorates High-Glucose-Induced Oxidative Stress and Neuroinflammation in Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells and a Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Rat Model

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a common complication of diabetes that causes severe visual impairment globally. The pathogenesis of DR is related to oxidative stress and chronic inflammation. The fibroblast growth factor type 1 (FGF-1) mitogen plays crucial roles in cell function, development, and metabolism. FGF-1 is involved in blood sugar regulation and exerts beneficial antioxidative and anti-inflammatory effects on various organ systems. This study investigated the antioxidative and anti-inflammatory neuroprotective effects of FGF-1 on high-glucose-induced retinal damage. The results revealed that FGF-1 treatment significantly reversed the harmful effects of oxidative stress and inflammatory mediators in retinal tissue in a streptozotocin-induced diabetic rat model. These protective effects were also observed in the in vitro model of retinal ARPE-19 cells exposed to a high-glucose condition. We demonstrated that FGF-1 attenuated p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase and nuclear factor-κB pathway activation under the high-glucose condition. Our results indicated that FGF-1 could effectively prevent retinal injury in diabetes. The findings of this study could be used to develop novel treatments for DR that aim to reduce the cascade of oxidative stress and inflammatory signals in neuroretinal tissue.

Ranibizumab for the treatment of diabetic retinopathy

Introduction: Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the most common microvascular complication of diabetes mellitus and the leading cause of blindness in young adults. Prior to anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) agents, the treatment of DR was based on control of systemic factors and laser photocoagulation. Over the past decade, the use of anti-VEGF agents has revolutionized the treatment of DR, including diabetic macular edema (DME).Areas covered: Ranibizumab has been proven to be effective for the treatment of DME in large clinical trials, while patients in these studies have been assessed in terms of DR severity change. In this review, evidence from randomized trials regarding the use of ranibizumab for DR treatment is presented.Expert opinion: A comprehensive presentation of randomized clinical trials evaluating ranibizumab for DR indicates that it is effective and safe, offering improvement of DR severity in both non-proliferative and proliferative forms. However, there is no general consensus regarding the exact treatment regimen in patients with DR, while the effect of ranibizumab on the progression of retinal ischemia remains unclear.