Abstract
Purpose: :
Patients with untreated neovascular AMD often experience losses in clinically measured visual acuity and report difficulty in everyday visual functioning such as reading which can impact quality of life. Ranibizumab (Lucentis®) has been shown to improve visual function measured by the VFQ in patients with neovascular AMD. Further analysis of patient reported data from MARINA and ANCHOR was reviewed to gain insight into the impact of ranibizumab on patient reported ability to read. The purpose of this research is to evaluate patient reported changes in reading in neovascular AMD patients enrolled in MARINA and ANCHOR.
Methods: :
In MARINA, subjects were randomized 1:1:1 to sham injection (n=238), or 0.3 mg (n=238) or 0.5 mg ranibizumab (n=240). In ANCHOR, subjects were randomized 1:1:1 to PDT (n=143), 0.3 mg (n=140) or 0.5 mg ranibizumab (n=140). VFQ reading items included how much difficulty subjects have 1) "reading ordinary print in newspapers" and 2) "reading the small print in a telephone book, or on a medicine bottle, or on legal forms." Responses ranged from 1 to 5 where 1=no difficulty, 2=a little difficulty, 3=moderate difficulty, 4=extreme difficulty, and 5= stopped activity due to vision. Mean responses at baseline and 24 months were compared.
Results: :
See Table 1.
Conclusions: :
In MARINA and ANCHOR, there was a trend towards improvement in the reading items at 24 months in the ranibizumab-treated subjects in contrast to the sham or PDT groups. These data further demonstrate the impact of ranibizumab therapy on critical vision-related function and overall quality of life in patients with neovascular AMD patients.
Clinical Trial: :
www.clinicaltrials.gov NCT00056836 and NCT00061594
Keywords: quality of life • age-related macular degeneration • clinical (human) or epidemiologic studies: treatment/prevention assessment/controlled clinical trials