New Treatment Effective For Treatment of Dry AMD

A Phase 2 study has found that a new drug could be a safe and effective treatment for improving vision in patients with dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

On October 13, 2019, David Boyer, MD (Retina-Vitreous Associates Medical Group), presented results from a study of risuteganib intravitreal injection to members of the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO). He reported that the Phase 2 primary endpoint was met, with nearly half of those receiving the treatment achieving an increase of 8 or more letters of best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) at 48 weeks.

A total of 45 patients were recruited for the study and 42 were included in the final analyses. A total of 25 patients were included in the risuteganib group while 14 were included in the sham group. Due to the successful results, all patients were allowed to switch over to risuteganib at week 16.

No serious systemic serious adverse events and no ocular serious events occurred as a result of risuteganib use. In addition to the study participants, 1200 injections have been given outside of the study.

For descriptions of this and other treatments for dry AMD now in clinical use and in trials, see A Guide To Research in Dry AMD

SOURCE: “Primary Results from Phase 2 Study of Risuteganib (RSG) in Intermediate Dry AMD,” presented at AAO 2019 by David Boyer, MD.