​New therapy for polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy to suppress abnormal blood vessel growth

According to the data, more than half of Asian patients with age-related macular degeneration suffer from more acute polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV), but long-term photodynamic therapy can cause serious side effects. As a result prompting local researchers to carry out clinical studies in many countries and regions, under the leadership of Professor Wong Tien Yin, and have thus successfully found a better treatment.

After fifty years old, the body will begin to appear all kinds of problems, yesterday with some body ache, and today the pain will be elsewhere, and tomorrow I do not know which part will degrade. Eyes are the soul of the window, and are unable to escape the fate of aging.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a type of ocular disease that causes macular degeneration and retinal lesions in the retina behind aging.

Abnormal blood vessels bleeding or liquid secretion

According to the website of the Singapore Health Services Group, a community study in 1997 showed that a quarter of the local people over the age of 60 were suffering from age-related macular degeneration. According to the data, half of Asian patients with age-related macular degeneration have more acute polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV).

PCV is also a chronic degenerative eye disease in which the patient's macula is damaged by bleeding from the bloodstream or liquid secretion which is caused by an abnormal blood vessel. The typical condition is blurred vision or a blind spot in the center and in the vicinity of the line of sight. These conditions can suddenly appear and persist once they appear.

PCV is a subtype of wet age-related macular degeneration and also a major cause of serious blindness in people over 60 years of age.

PCV affects both eyes at the same time

Professor Wong Tien Yin, dean of the National Eye Center of Singapore and a senior consultant for vitreoretinal surgery, said: "PCV generally starts to emerge when a person is 50 or 60 but we occasionally encounter age Light patient."

The medical community is not yet clear on the etiology of both age-related macular degeneration and PCV, but age is one of the major factors. In contrast, the incidence of PCV is more prevalent in Asia than in western countries, which may be genetically related.

In addition, smoking, high BMI, high blood pressure and diabetes may be risk factors for PCV.

Age-related macular degeneration often affects only one eye, while PCV affects both eyes simultaneously. In addition, the symptoms of the two are very similar. Professor Wong Tien Yin said that it is important to distinguish between the two, and only trained ophthalmologists can distinguish them by the Indigocyanine green (IGC) test.

After detecting the cause, the next step is to treat it.

Aflibercept is injected enough to inhibit abnormal blood vessel growth

Professor Wong Tien Yin said that the current traditional therapy is to use photodynamic therapy (Photodynamic Therapy), and then injected anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) drugs into the eye, the drug called "Aflibercept" is anti-VEGF A.

However, long-term use of photodynamic therapy can cause serious side effects. As a result prompting local researchers started a two-year clinical study of patients in Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, Hong Kong and Australia to successfully find ways to better treat PCV.

They found that the original injection of "Aflibercept" alone was enough to suppress the growth of abnormal blood vessels. More than 80% of monotherapy-based patients do not have active polyps again compared with traditional dual therapy.

In other words, the use of Aflibercept inhibitors can be a first-line treatment for the majority of patients with PCV.

Professor Wong Tien Yin pointed out that the number of patients who inject drugs is also believed to decrease from once every two months to once every four months. This will undoubtedly greatly reduce the treatment time and cost for the patient.

In addition, he also reminded retinal specialists may detect the patient has been suffering from PCV before the onset of the condition.

Therefore, he suggested that older people should have regular eye examinations because early detection of PCV can lead to early treatment and avoid irreversible blindness problems.

More than 80% of monotherapy-based patients do not have active polyps again compared with traditional dual therapy.