Retinal angiomatous proliferation treated with a combination of intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide and photodynamic therapy with verteporfin

PURPOSE. Retinal angiomatous proliferation (RAP) is a particularly aggressive form of exudative age-related macular degeneration. Response to laser photocoagulation or to photodynamic therapy (PDT) alone is often disappointing. The purpose of this study was to determine whether intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide (TA) injections followed by PDT in eyes with early stage RAP may be effective. METHODS. Prospective uncontrolled study, enrolling 11 patients (11 eyes) with stage 2 RAP, treated with intravitreal TA injection followed by PDT Patients with large pigment epithelium detachment, RAP stage 3, or pre-existing glaucoma and known steroid responders were excluded. All patients underwent a complete ophthalmic examination including fluorescein and indocyanine green (ICG) angiography and optical coherence tomography (OCT-3) at baseline and at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months. Informed consent was obtained from all patients. RESULTS. Mean follow-up was 14.9 months (range 6-21 months). Mean age was 82 years. In four patients a small pigment epithelium detachment was found on tomography. Initial visual acuity (VA) ranged from 0.1 to 0.6 on the Snellen scale. After calculating the logarithmic values the authors found an initial mean VA of logMAR 0.61, which improved by 1.5, 0.9, and 0.9 log lines after 3, 6, and 12 months, respectively. Although the VA gain from baseline tended to decrease with time, only 2 patients (18%) had an actual loss of acuity (>= 3 lines). Retreatment was required in 5 eyes. CONCLUSIONS. In this prospective pilot study examining the use of intravitreal TA followed by PDT with verteporfin in eyes with stage 2 RAP, without a large pigment epithelium detachment, the authors found a potential benefit in terms of stabilization or even improvement of vision.