The Use of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Inhibitors and Complementary Treatment Options in Polypoidal Choroidal Vasculopathy: A Subtype of Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Efficacy and safety of anti-vascular endothelial growth agents for the treatment of polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy: A systematic review and meta-analysis

There remains limited agreement regarding the efficacy and safety of different antivascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) agents for the management of polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV). Our meta-analysis compares different anti-VEGF agents for PCV treatment. Ovid MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library were systematically searched from January 2000 to July 2022. We included articles comparing the efficacy and safety of different anti-VEGF agents, specifically bevacizumab (BEV), ranibizumab (RAN), aflibercept AFL), and brolucizumab (BRO), for patients with PCV. 10,440 studies were identified, 122 underwent full-text review, and seven were included. One study was a randomized trial, and six were observational studies. Ranibizumab and aflibercept were associated with a similar best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) at the last visit in three observational studies (P = 0.10), similar retinal thickness at the last visit in two observational studies (P = 0.85). One observational study comparing BEV versus RAN found comparable outcomes for final BCVA, retinal thickness, and polyp regression. One randomized trial on BRO versus AFL found comparable outcomes for improvement in BCVA, while anatomical outcomes favored BRO. The available evidence suggests that final BCVA is comparable across different anti-VEGF agents, however, further investigation is warranted due to paucity of evidence.

Serum Amyloid A 4 as a Common Marker of Persistent Inflammation in Patients with Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration and Polypoidal Choroidal Vasculopathy

Background

Neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) and its subtype, polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV), are common choroidal vasculopathies. Although they share many common clinical manifestations and treatment strategies, a lack of comprehensive analysis of these conditions means that it is difficult for researchers to further explore the common pathomechanisms of nAMD and PCV. The aim of this study was to characterize aqueous humor (AH) proteome alterations and identify a novel biomarker related to both nAMD and PCV.

Methods

Liquid Chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was adopted to analyze the AH proteomes of nAMD, PCV and controls. The target protein was validated using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and subjected to receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis.

Results

A total of 737 different proteins were identified in all the groups, of which 544 were quantifiable. The bioinformatics analysis suggested that immune response activation is the essential event in both nAMD and PCV. Serum amyloid A (SAA) 4 is closely associated with a number of chronic inflammatory diseases, and it was enriched as the hub protein. ROC analysis showed that SAA4 could distinguish both nAMD and PCV from the controls.

Conclusion

This comprehensive study provides insights into, and furthers our understanding of, the pathological mechanism of nAMD and PCV. Additionally, the SAA4 level alteration may serve as a common biomarker of nAMD and PCV.

Recent Advances in Clinical Applications of Imaging in Retinal Diseases

Many diseases that cause visual impairment, as well as systemic conditions, manifest in the posterior segment of the eye. With the advent of high-speed, high-resolution, reliable, and noninvasive imaging techniques, ophthalmologists are becoming more dependent on ocular imaging for disease diagnosis, classification, and management in clinical practice. There are rapid advances on the indications of multimodal retinal imaging techniques, including the application of ultra-widefield fundus angiography, fundus autofluorescence, optical coherence tomography, as well as optical coherence tomography angiography. This review summarizes and highlights the clinical applications, latest indications, and interpretations of multimodal imaging in age-related macular degeneration, polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy, diabetic macular edema, central serous chorioretinopathy, diabetic retinopathy, retinal vein occlusion, and uveitis.

Joint multimodal deep learning-based automatic segmentation of ICGA and OCT images for assessment of PCV biomarkers

Purpose

To develop a fully-automatic hybrid algorithm to jointly segment and quantify biomarkers of polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV) on indocyanine green angiography (ICGA) and spectral domain-OCT (SD-OCT) images.

Design

Evaluation of diagnostic test or technology.

Participants

Seventy-two participants with PCV enrolled in clinical studies at Singapore National Eye Center.

Methods

The dataset consisted of 2-dimensional (2-D) ICGA and 3-dimensional (3-D) SD-OCT images which were spatially registered and manually segmented by clinicians. A deep learning-based hybrid algorithm called PCV-Net was developed for automatic joint segmentation of biomarkers. The PCV-Net consisted of a 2-D segmentation branch for ICGA and 3-D segmentation branch for SD-OCT. We developed fusion attention modules to connect the 2-D and 3-D branches for effective use of the spatial correspondence between the imaging modalities by sharing learned features. We also used self-supervised pretraining and ensembling to further enhance the performance of the algorithm without the need for additional datasets. We compared the proposed PCV-Net to several alternative model variants.

Main Outcome Measures

The PCV-Net was evaluated based on the Dice similarity coefficient (DSC) of the segmentations and the Pearson's correlation and absolute difference of the clinical measurements obtained from the segmentations. Manual grading was used as the gold standard.

Results

The PCV-Net showed good performance compared to manual grading and alternative model variants based on both quantitative and qualitative analyses. Compared to the baseline variant, PCV-Net improved the DSC by 0.04 to 0.43 across the different biomarkers, increased the correlations, and decreased the absolute differences of clinical measurements of interest. Specifically, the largest average (mean ± standard error) DSC improvement was for intraretinal fluid, from 0.02 ± 0.00 (baseline variant) to 0.45 ± 0.06 (PCV-Net). In general, improving trends were observed across the model variants as more technical specifications were added, demonstrating the importance of each aspect of the proposed method.

Conclusion

The PCV-Net has the potential to aid clinicians in disease assessment and research to improve clinical understanding and management of PCV.

Financial Disclosures

Proprietary or commercial disclosure may be found after the references.

Efficacy of Initial vs. Delayed Photodynamic Therapy in Combination With Conbercept for Polypoidal Choroidal Vasculopathy

Purpose

To compare the efficacy of initial vs. delayed photodynamic therapy (PDT) in combination with intravitreal injection of conbercept (IVC) for polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV).

Design

Multicenter, randomized, non-inferiority clinical trial.

Subjects

Naïve PCV patients.

Methods

Patients were randomized 1:1 into two groups: initial PDT with IVC and delayed PDT with IVC. At baseline, patients in the initial combination group were treated with PDT and IVC within 1 week, while patients in the delayed combination group were treated with IVC alone. PDT and IVC was given PRN during the follow-up in each group.

Main Outcome Measures

Non-inferiority of delayed PDT with IVC to initial PDT with IVC for mean change in best-corrected visual acuity from baseline to month 12 (95% CI of the difference entirely above −5 letters).

Results

Eighty-six patients were enrolled, with 43 in each group. At month 12, the change of BCVA in initial combination group was equivalent to that in the delayed combination group, with gains of 6.42 ± 1.89 and 7.49 ± 2.14 (mean ± standard error) letters, respectively [delayed group minus initial group: 1.07 letters; 95% confidence interval (CI): −4.62 to 6.76; P_{non−inferiority} = 0.0198]. The rates of complete polyp regression were 66.67 and 45.83% in the initial and delayed combination groups, respectively. The difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.386). The mean reductions of CRT were 204.77 ± 28.79 and 84.14 ± 30.62 μm in each group respectively. The difference was statistically significant (P = 0.005). In addition, the mean injection numbers were 3.47 ± 2.39 and 4.91 ± 2.65 in each group respectively. The differences were statistically significant (P = 0.010).

Conclusions

There was effective in both groups in patients with PCV. The initial combination group showed a more efficient decrease in CRT and polyp regression, along with fewer injections. However, the delayed combination group was non-inferior compared with the initial combination group in terms of the improvement of BCVA.

Trial Registration

https://ClinicalTrials.gov, Identifier: NCT02821520.

Novel volumetric imaging biomarkers for assessing disease activity in eyes with PCV

The aim of this study was to evaluate influence of baseline imaging features on visual and anatomical outcomes in eyes with PCV treated with anti-VEGF monotherapy. In this prospective study we enrolled participants with treatment-naïve PCV who followed a treat-and-extend protocol using intravitreal aflibercept (IVA) monotherapy. Baseline clinical features evaluatedincluded best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), traditional features such as lesion size, fluid-related OCT parameters and novel parameters using automated software. This included quantitative and qualitative pigment epithelium detachment (PED) parameters [height, volume]; and choroidal parameters. [choroidal thickness (CT), choroidal volume (CV) and choroidal vascularity index (CVI). We evaluated the predictive value of each parameter on visual and anatomical outcome at month 12. We additionally evaluated initial treatment response after 3 monthly injections with respect to month 12 outcomes. Fifty-two eyes from 52 participants were included in the study. The BCVA increased from 61.1 ± 13.2 to 69.6 ± 13.2 early treatment diabetic retinopathy study (ETDRS) letters (p < 0.01) and CRT reduced from 455.7 ± 182.4 µm to 272.7 ± 86.2 (p < 0.01) from baseline to month 12. The proportion of eyes with PED decreased significant from 100% at baseline to 80% at month 12 (p < 0.01). Reduction in the mean maximum height of PED (from 381.3 ± 236.3 µm to 206.8 vs ± 146.4 µm) and PED volume (from 1322 ± 853 nl to 686 ± 593 nl) (p < 0.01) was also noted from baseline to month12. Baseline features associated with better month 12 BCVA included baseline BCVA (β =  − 0.98, 95%CI − 3.38 to − 1.61, p = 0.02) and baseline CRT (β =  − 0.98, 95%CI − 1.56 to − 0.40, p = 0.04) while the disease activity at month12 was significantly associated with lower baseline CRT (366.0 ± 129.5 vs 612.0 ± 188.0 , p < 0.001), lower baseline PED height (242.0 ± 150.0 vs 542.0 ± 298.0 µm, p < 0.01), lower baseline PED volume (0.6 ± 0.3 mm³ vs 2.2 ± 1.3 mm³ vs, p < 0.01), lower proportion with marked CVH (17.9% vs 46.2%, p = 0.02) and lower mean CVI (61.8 ± 1.4 vs 63.0 ± 1.4, p < 0.02). Additionally, a larger decrease in CRT (per 100 nm) and larger PED volume reduction (per 100 nl) at month 3 from baseline were associated with greater BCVA gain and inactive disease. PED-related volumetric parameters have an additional predictive value to traditional biomarkers of disease activity in eyes with PCV undergoing anti-VEGF monotherapy. With increasingly precise quantification, PEDs can be a crucial biomarker in addition to traditional parameters and may aid in retreatment decisions.

Evolving treatment paradigms for PCV

Polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV) is a subtype of neovascular AMD (nAMD) that accounts for a significant proportion of nAMD cases worldwide, and particularly in Asia. Contemporary PCV treatment strategies have closely followed those used in typical nAMD, though there are significant gaps in knowledge on PCV management and it remains unclear if these strategies are appropriate. Current clinical trial data suggest intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy alone or in combination with photodynamic therapy is effective in managing haemorrhage and exudation in PCV, although the optimal treatment interval, including as-needed and treat-and-extend approaches, is unclear. Newer imaging modalities, including OCT angiography and high-resolution spectral domain OCT have enabled characterisation of unique PCV biomarkers that may provide guidance on how and when treatment and re-treatment should be initiated. Treatment burden for PCV is a major focus of future therapeutic research and several newly developed anti-VEGF agents, including brolucizumab, faricimab, and new modes of drug delivery like the port delivery system, offer hope for dramatically reduced treatment burden for PCV patients. Beyond anti-VEGF therapy, recent developments in our understanding of PCV pathophysiology, in particular the role of choroidal anatomy and lipid mediators in PCV pathogenesis, offer new treatment avenues that may become clinically relevant in the future. This article explores the current management of PCV and more recent approaches to PCV treatment based on an improved understanding of this unique disease process.

Multimodal Imaging Comparison of Polypoidal Choroidal Vasculopathy Between Asian and Caucasian Populations

PURPOSE

Differences in multimodal imaging features between Asian and Caucasian eyes may contribute to our understanding of the etiology of the polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV). The purpose of this study was to compare the multimodal imaging features of Asian and Caucasian eyes with PCV.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional, retrospective, multicenter, observational case series.

METHODS

Consecutive treatment-naïve patients diagnosed with PCV based on indocyanine green angiography in accordance with published guidelines. Demographic and multimodal imaging findings based on color fundus photography, spectral domain optical coherence tomography, fluorescein angiography, and indocyanine green angiography were graded.

RESULTS

A total of 250 participants with PCV (128 Asian vs 122 Caucasian participants) were included. Asian participants presented with lower best-corrected visual acuity (mean ± SD: 0.7 ± 0.6 logMAR vs 0.4 ± 0.3 logMAR; P < .001) compared with Caucasian participants. More Asian eyes had subretinal hemorrhage (mean ± SD: 53.9% vs 24.6%; P < .001) and larger areas of hemorrhage (mean ± SD: 7.5 ± 15.2 mm² vs 1.3 ± 3.3 mm²; P < .001). More Asian eyes had pachyvessels (84.4% vs 28.7%; P < .001), choroidal vascular hyperpermeability (70.3% vs 17.2%; P < .001), and widespread polypoidal lesions (19.5% vs 8.2%; P = .005), and Caucasian eyes had more drusen (79.5% vs 49.2%; P = .02).

CONCLUSIONS

Multimodal imaging analysis revealed ethnic differences in disease characteristics of PCV, suggesting pathophysiologic mechanism of the disease vary based on ethnicity.

Structural and vascular changes of the choroid in polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy after intravitreal anti-VEGF therapy

INTRODUCTION

To identify the changes in vessel density (VD) of choriocapillaris (CC) and in subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) and to evaluate their correlation with functional response after three monthly intravitreal injections of Ranibizumab (loading phase) in patients affected by Polypoidal Choroidal Vasculopathy (PCV).

METHODS

A total of 30 eyes of 30 PCV patients and 30 eyes of 30 healthy subjects as control group were enrolled in this prospective study. The best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was measured at baseline and after one month from third intravitreal injections in each patient. The VD of CC was evaluated in macular area by means of Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography (OCTA). Central macular thickness (CMT) and SFCT were analyzed by Enhanced Depth Imaging (EDI)-OCT.

RESULTS

The VD of CC showed statistically lower values in PCV patients at baseline respect to after loading phase (LP) and normal eyes (p<0.001). CMT and SFCT revealed a statistically significant reduction after LP (p<0.001). Multiple regression analysis revealed a significant negative correlation between the reduced SFCT, CMT at baseline and the improvement of BCVA after LP (p<0.05).

CONCLUSION

The close relationship between the thinner SFCT and better visual outcome after LP reveals the role of the EDI-OCT assessment of choroid as predictive biomarker of functional response to anti-VEGF therapy. This tool could provide a quantitative evaluation of structural features of choroid avoiding mistakes of evaluation at OCTA.

Effects of Anti-Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Drugs Before and After Pars Plana Vitrectomy in Patients with Polypoidal Choroidal Vasculopathy and Vitreous Hemorrhage

Purpose: To compare the clinical effects of postoperative versus perioperative injection of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) drugs before and after pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) in patients with vitreous hemorrhage secondary to polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV). Methods: This was a retrospective study of patients who underwent PPV due to vitreous hemorrhage between October 2013 and June 2019 at Ningbo Eye Hospital. The patients who underwent PPV surgery due to PCV-secondary vitreous hemorrhage were included. The primary outcome was the changes in best-corrected visual acuity. The secondary outcome was the central macular thickness. Results: Compared with the postoperative group (n = 20), the perioperative group (n = 18) showed a smaller number of postoperative anti-VEGF injections (5.1 ± 0.8 vs. 8.0 ± 1.5, P < 0.05) and lower frequencies of early hyphema (5.6% vs. 30.0%, P < 0.05), and recurrent vitreous hemorrhage (11.1% vs. 30.0%, P < 0.05). The logarithm of minimal angle resolution (LogMAR) was smaller in the perioperative group compared with the postoperative group at 1 week, 1 month, and 3 months after PPV (P < 0.05), but there were no differences thereafter. Compared with the postoperative group, the perioperative group had thinner fovea at 1 week, 1 month, and 3 months (P < 0.05), but the differences disappeared after 3 months. Conclusion: In patients with PCV and vitreous hemorrhage, compared with postoperative anti-VEGF, perioperative anti-VEGF could reduce the difficulty of surgery and reduce the occurrence of postoperative complications, but there were no differences in long-term vision and macular thickness after surgery.

Efficacy and safety of brolucizumab versus aflibercept in eyes with polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy in Japanese participants of HAWK

Purpose

To compare the efficacy and safety of brolucizumab versus aflibercept in eyes with polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV) over 96 weeks in the HAWK study.

Design

HAWK was a global, 2-year, randomised, double-masked, multicentre phase III trial in participants with neovascular age-related macular degeneration.

Methods

Of the Japanese participants with PCV, 39 received brolucizumab 6 mg and 30 received aflibercept 2 mg. After 3 monthly loading doses, brolucizumab-treated eyes received an injection every 12 weeks (q12w) but were adjusted to q8w if disease activity was detected. Aflibercept-treated eyes received fixed q8w dosing. Mean change in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), the proportion of participants on q12w, retinal thickness, retinal fluid changes and safety were assessed to Week 96.

Results

Mean change in BCVA (early treatment diabetic retinopathy study (ETDRS) letters) from baseline to week 48/week 96 was+10.4/+11.4 for brolucizumab and +11.6/+11.1 for aflibercept. For brolucizumab-treated eyes, the probability of only q12w dosing after loading through week 48 was 76%, and 68% through week 96. Fluid resolution was greater with brolucizumab than aflibercept: respective proportions of eyes with intraretinal fluid and/or subretinal fluid were 7.7% and 30% at week 48% and 12.8% and 16.7% at week 96. Brolucizumab exhibited an overall well-tolerated safety profile despite a higher rate of intraocular inflammation compared with aflibercept.

Conclusion

In Japanese eyes with PCV, brolucizumab q12w/q8w monotherapy resulted in robust and consistent BCVA gains that were comparable to q8w aflibercept dosing. Anatomical outcomes favoured brolucizumab over aflibercept, with 76% of brolucizumab participants maintained on q12w dosing after loading to week 48.

Non-ICGA treatment criteria for Suboptimal Anti-VEGF Response for Polypoidal Choroidal Vasculopathy: APOIS PCV Workgroup Report 2

PURPOSE

To develop and validate OCT and color fundus photography (CFP) criteria in differentiating polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV) from typical neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) in eyes with suboptimal response to anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) monotherapy and to determine whether OCT alone can be used to guide photodynamic therapy (PDT) treatment.

DESIGN

Clinical study evaluating diagnostic accuracy.

PARTICIPANTS

Patients with nAMD who received 3-month anti-VEGF monotherapy but had persistent activity defined as subretinal fluid or intraretinal fluid at month 3 assessments.

METHODS

In phase 1, international retina experts evaluated OCT and CFP of eyes with nAMD to identify the presence or absence of features due to PCV. The performance of individual and combinations of these features were compared with ICGA. In phase 2, these criteria were applied to an independent image set to assess generalizability. In a separate exercise, retinal experts drew proposed PDT treatment spots using only OCT and near-infrared (NIR) images in eyes with PCV and persistent activity. The location and size of proposed spot were compared with ICGA to determine the extent of coverage of polypoidal lesions (PLs) and branching neovascular network (BNN).

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Sensitivity and specificity of CFP and OCT criteria to differentiate PCV from nAMD and accuracy of coverage of OCT-guided PDT compared with ICGA.

RESULTS

In eyes with persistent activity, the combination of 3 non-ICGA-based criteria (sharp-peaked pigment epithelial detachment [PED], subretinal pigment epithelium [RPE] ring-like lesion, and orange nodule) to detect PCV showed good agreement compared with ICGA, with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.85. Validation using both an independent image set and assessors achieved an accuracy of 0.77. Compared with ICGA, the OCT-guided PDT treatment spot covered 100% of PL and 90% of the BNN.

CONCLUSIONS

In nAMD eyes with persistent activity, OCT and CFP can differentiate PCV from typical nAMD, which may allow the option of adjunct PDT treatment. Furthermore, OCT alone can be used to plan adjunct PDT treatment without the need for ICGA, with consistent and complete coverage of PL.

The polyp regression rate and treatment prognosis of different interventions for polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy: a systematic review and meta-analysis

PURPOSE

To estimate the polyp regression rate and treatment prognosis of different interventions for polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV) and clarify its baseline characteristics.

METHODS

The PubMed, EMBASE, and Ovid were searched up to January 2020 to identify related studies. R software version 3.6.3 was used to perform the statistical analyses. Results in proportion with 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated by means of the Freeman-Tukey variant of arcsine square transformation. Chi-squared test and I² statistics were used to evaluate the statistical heterogeneity. Sensitivity analysis and subgroup analyses were performed to identify the source of heterogeneity.

RESULTS

This meta-analysis included 104 studies with 5816 patients. The pooling results indicated the general rate of complete polyp regression at post-treatment 12 months was 64% (95% CI [57~71%]), 89% (95% CI [81~95%]) for photodynamic therapy (PDT) monotherapy, 78% (95% CI [68~86%]) for PDT plus anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF), and 42% (95% CI [35~49%]) for anti-VEGF monotherapy; PDT plus anti-VEGF showed the best efficacy in visual improvement and achieved the highest rate of dry macula (91%, 95% CI [78~99%]), while anti-VEGF monotherapy achieved the lowest polyp recurrence rate (14%, 95% CI [8~20%]); PDT monotherapy showed the best efficacy in pigment epithelial detachment regression (66%, 95% CI [58~83%]). Additionally, the baseline characteristics of PCV were also well described.

CONCLUSION

PDT plus anti-VEGF is still valuable for the management of PCV; it could achieve not only satisfactory anatomical outcomes like dry macula rate and polyp regression rate but also ideal visual prognosis like BCVA improvement.

The Efficacy of Conbercept in Polypoidal Choroidal Vasculopathy: A Systematic Review

Methods

Thirty studies with 1308 eyes were identified and included in this study. The primary outcome measures were best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), and secondary outcomes were optical coherence tomography characteristics and polyp regression rates. The pooled results were calculated by the random-effect or fixed-effect model according to the heterogeneity of the data.

Results

Despite a large standard deviation in means (SMD) improvement for BCVA and central retinal thickness (CRT) in the conbercept group, there was no statistically significant difference in the other outcomes compared to ranibizumab and aflibercept. However, there was a greater polyp regression rate in the conbercept group at 12 months.

Conclusions

This systematic review indicates that conbercept may achieve similar BCVA and CRT improvements as ranibizumab and aflibercept, with a superior rate of polyp regression at 12 months.

Polypoidal Choroidal Vasculopathy: Consensus Nomenclature and Non-Indocyanine Green Angiograph Diagnostic Criteria from the Asia-Pacific Ocular Imaging Society PCV Workgroup

PURPOSE

To develop consensus terminology in the setting of polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV) and to develop and validate a set of diagnostic criteria not requiring indocyanine green angiography (ICGA) for differentiating PCV from typical neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) based on a combination of OCT and color fundus photography findings.

DESIGN

Evaluation of diagnostic test results.

PARTICIPANTS

Panel of retina specialists.

METHODS

As part of the Asia-Pacific Ocular Imaging Society, an international group of experts surveyed and discussed the published literature regarding the current nomenclature and lesion components for PCV, and proposed an updated consensus nomenclature that reflects our latest understanding based on imaging and histologic reports. The workgroup evaluated a set of diagnostic features based on OCT images and color fundus photographs for PCV that may distinguish it from typical nAMD and assessed the performance of individual and combinations of these non-ICGA features, aiming to propose a new set of diagnostic criteria that does not require the use of ICGA. The final recommendation was validated in 80 eyes from 2 additional cohorts.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Consensus nomenclature system for PCV lesion components and non-ICGA-based criteria to differentiate PCV from typical nAMD.

RESULTS

The workgroup recommended the terms polypoidal lesion and branching neovascular network for the 2 key lesion components in PCV. For the diagnosis of PCV, the combination of 3 OCT-based major criteria (sub-retinal pigment epithelium [RPE] ring-like lesion, en face OCT complex RPE elevation, and sharp-peaked PED) achieved an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.90. Validation of this new scheme in a separate subset 80 eyes achieved an accuracy of 82%.

CONCLUSIONS

We propose updated terminology for PCV lesion components that better reflects the nature of these lesions and is based on international consensus. A set of practical diagnostic criteria applied easily to spectral-domain OCT results can be used for diagnosing PCV with high accuracy in clinical settings in which ICGA is not performed routinely.

Updates on the Management of Ocular Vasculopathies with VEGF Inhibitor Conbercept

Purpose: To provide a detailed review on the therapeutic efficacy of conbercept for the management of ocular vasculopathies. Methods: A comprehensive literature search of various electronic databases was performed. Results: Ocular vasculopathy is one of the major causes of visual impairment and blindness which includes a range of disorders. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) regulates angiogenesis, enhances vascular permeability, and drives the formation of neovascularization. Anti-VEGF therapy has been shown to prevent vision loss or potentially improve vision in patients with exudative or neovascular retinal disease. The most recent anti-VEGF drug in China is conbercept. In the USA and Europe, bevacizumab is the most recently approved anti-VEGF agent. Conclusions: Conbercept serves as another anti-VEGF option for patients with neovascular AMD and other retinal vascular disorders. There have not been many clinical trials that study conbercept as compared with other currently available anti-VEGF drugs. There is a need for large-scale, well-designed, randomized clinical trials to ensure its long-term safety and efficacy and to determine if it has any advantages over other anti-VEGF agents.

Plasma levels of inflammatory chemokines in patients with polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy

PURPOSE

Chemokines are a group of cytokines that guide immune cell migration. We studied plasma levels of inflammatory chemokines in patients with polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV) and compared with healthy age-matched control individuals.

METHODS

This was a clinic-based prospective case-control study of participants (n = 60) with either PCV (n = 26) or age-matched healthy controls (n = 34). We sampled fresh venous blood and isolated plasma for analysis. We used U-PLEX Human Assays to quantify concentrations of the inflammatory chemokines MCP-1/CCL2, RANTES/CCL5, eotaxin/CCL11, IP-10/CXCL10 and fractalkine/CX3CL1.

RESULTS

Plasma levels of fractalkine was significantly higher in patients with PCV when compared to healthy controls (mean ± SD: 7291 ± 2461 pg/ml versus 5879 ± 2001 pg/ml; p = 0.021). Plasma levels of MCP-1 (p = 0.846), RANTES (p = 0.288), eotaxin (p = 0.496) and IP-10 (p = 0.352) did not differ significantly between the groups. To evaluate possible biomarker quality of fractalkine, we used a ROC analysis and found a positive but weak discriminatory ability (AUC = 0.68).

CONCLUSION

Patients with PCV have a higher plasma level of fractalkine. Although the differences do not possess strong biomarker qualities, they inform on disease processes of a poorly understood disease and suggest that the fractalkine-CX3CR1 axis may be involved. As this study did not investigate local chemokine concentrations, we are unable to confirm or disprove any local chorioretinal interaction, and our findings should be interpreted with such caution.

Pharmacological Advances in the Treatment of Age-related Macular Degeneration

Age-related macular degeneration is an acquired degenerative disease that is responsible for severe loss of vision in elderly people. There are two types: dry age-related macular degeneration and wet age-related macular degeneration. Its treatment has been improved and tries to be tailored in the future. The aim of this review is to summarize the pharmacological advances in the treatment of age-related macular degeneration. Regarding dry AMD, there is no effective treatment to reduce its progression. However, some molecules such as lampalizumab and eculizumab were under investigation, although they have shown low efficacy. Herein, in an attempt to prevent dry AMD progression, the most important studies suggested increasing the antioxidants intake and quitting the smoke habit. On the other hand, wet AMD has more developed treatment. Nowadays, the gold standard treatment is anti-VEGF injections. However, more effective molecules are currently under investigation. There are different molecules under research for dry AMD and wet AMD. This fact could help us treat our patients with more effective and lasting drugs but more clinical trials and safety studies are required in order to achieve an optimal treatment.

Choroidal Neovascularization: Mechanisms of Endothelial Dysfunction

Many conditions affecting the heart, brain, and even the eyes have their origins in blood vessel pathology, underscoring the role of vascular regulation. In age-related macular degeneration (AMD), there is excessive growth of abnormal blood vessels in the eye (choroidal neovascularization), eventually leading to vision loss due to detachment of retinal pigmented epithelium. As the advanced stage of this disease involves loss of retinal pigmented epithelium, much less attention has been given to early vascular events such as endothelial dysfunction. Although current gold standard therapy using inhibitors of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) have achieved initial successes, some drawbacks include the lack of long-term restoration of visual acuity, as well as a subset of the patients being refractory to existing treatment, alluding us and others to hypothesize upon VEGF-independent mechanisms. Against this backdrop, we present here a nonexhaustive review on the vascular underpinnings of AMD, implications with genetic and systemic factors, experimental models for studying choroidal neovascularization, and interestingly, on both endothelial-centric pathways and noncell autonomous mechanisms. We hope to shed light on future research directions in improving vascular function in ocular disorders.