Ranibizumab plus fufang xueshuantong capsule versus ranibizumab alone for exudative age-related macular degeneration.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the efficacy of ranibizumab plus fufang xueshuantong capsule (cFXST) with the efficacy of ranibizumab alone in treatment of exudative age-related macular degeneration. METHODS: This prospective, randomized, controlled, pilot study included 38 eyes from 38 patients with exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD) that were randomly allocated into two cohorts of 19 eyes each: ranibizumab (Cr) and ranibizumab plus cFXST (Cfr). All patients received three monthly injections of ranibizumab. Patients in Cfr also received daily oral supplementation of cFXST. Best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and thickness of the choroidal neovascularization-pigment epithelial detachment (CNV-PED) complex (measured by optical coherence tomography) were recorded at baseline and at 1 and 3 months after the first intravitreal injection of ranibizumab. RESULTS: In the Cfr, the CNV-PED complex thickness was reduced by 31.7% and 36.1% at 1 and 3 months, respectively; these reductions were significantly greater than the 19.7% and 24.2% reductions in the Cr. BCVA improvement was significantly greater in the Cfr than in the Cr after 3 months; the proportion of patients with functional response was also greater in the Cfr than in the Cr (16/16 vs. 8/17). CONCLUSION: Oral cFXST increases the efficacy of short-term ranibizumab treatment for exudative AMD.

A review on vasohibin and ocular neovascularization.

Ischemic and neovascular disease is one of the most difficult ocular diseases to deal with nowadays. Redundancy, poor visual acuity and decreased life quality are bothering patients and ophthalmologists for decades. After vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was found to be a primary factor in promoting retinal angiogenesis, intravitreal injection of anti-VEGF drugs has been the first-line treatment. Whereas, some patients are refractory to this therapy and problems of economic burden, local complications and adverse effects promote researches into other possible targets. The vasohibin (VASH) family is a newly-investigated factor in modulating ocular angiogenesis. The family includes VASH1 and VASH2, which show opposite effects of inhibiting and accelerating angiogenesis respectively. Positive results have been reported in cellular and animal experiments. With further researches, it can be a promising future target of treating ocular neovascular diseases.

A modified method for suprachoroidal fluid drainage in kissing choroidal detachment.

AIM: To introduce a new method for suprachoroidal fluid drainage before 23-gauge pars plana vitrectomy. METHODS: A 15° side-port blade was firstly used to create a sclerotomy into the suprachoroidal space for initial drainage. A 30-guage needle was then applied to inject balanced saline solution through the existing sclerotomy for further drainage. After most of the suprachoroidal fluid was drained, standard 3-port 23-guage pars plana vitrectomy was performed. RESULTS: We have succeeded in using this technique to treat five patients with retinal detachment and kissing choroidal detachment (KCD). The choroidal detachment was visibly recessed in all cases after drainage with no intraoperative complications. After removal of silicon oil at 3mo follow-up, all patients obtained a reattached retina. No postoperative complications such as hypotony and endophthalmitis occurred. CONCLUSION: The new technique is efficient and safe for suprachoroidal fluid drainage for patients with rhegmatogenous retinal detachment. In future, further larger series are needed to attest to its safety and efficacy.

Efficacy and safety of vitrectomy with internal limiting membrane peeling for diabetic macular edema: a Meta-analysis.

AIM: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of vitrectomy with internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling for diabetic macular edema (DME). METHODS: The PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane, SionMed, ClinicalTrials.gov, CNKI databases and Wanfang databases, published until Oct. 2017, were searched to identify studies comparing the clinical outcomes following vitrectomy with and without ILM peeling, for treating DME. Pooled results were expressed as odds ratios (ORs) with corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) for vitrectomy with and without ILM peeling with regard to best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), central macular thickness (CMT), and complication incidents. RESULTS: A total of 14 studies involving 857 eyes were included of which three studies were Chinese and the rests were English literatures. Meta-analysis indicated that compared with vitrectomy alone, vitrectomy with ILM peeling could improve BCVA more obviously (OR=1.66, 95%CI: 1.12-2.46, P=0.01) and had higher rate of CMT reduction (OR=3.89, 95%CI: 1.37-11.11, P=0.01). There were significant statistical differences between the two surgical methods for both BCVA and CMT (P<0.05). For the incidence of intraoperative and postoperative complications, the incidence of epiretinal membrane (ERM) was slightly lower in the ILM peeling group than the group without ILM peeling (OR=0.38, 95%CI: 0.07-2.00, P=0.25), although insignificant statistically. Other incidences of overall complications, iatrogenic peripheral retinal break and increased intraocular pressure indicated no significant difference between two groups (OR=1.19, 95%CI: 0.82-1.73, P=0.36; OR=1.21, 95%CI: 0.66-2.21, P=0.53; OR=1.34, 95%CI: 0.75-2.40, P=0.32). CONCLUSION: Vitrectomy is effective for DME and the effect can be improved by additional ILM peeling, especially for anatomical efficacy, without increasing the incidence of intraoperative and postoperative complications. However, it is imperative to gain more evaluation in the future due to the paucity of prospective randomized study.