2019

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Siddiqui Y, Yin J. Anterior Segment Applications of Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography. Semin Ophthalmol 2019;:1-6.Abstract
: To review the current literature regarding optical coherence tomography angiography (OCT-A) applications in the anterior segment. : A literature search was performed for terms including OCT-Angiography, anterior segment, cornea, conjunctiva, iris, applications and use in ophthalmology. : Fifteen studies were identified, 14 in human subjects. Studies with OCT-A of the conjunctiva, episclera, cornea, and iris were identified, some with normal eyes imaged and others with various pathologies. Most of these studies imaged corneal neovascularization. Three studies described protocols used for image acquisition, one of which was referenced by two later papers. : OCT-A is a noninvasive technology with recent applications in the anterior segment. Several pilot studies have been performed on various anterior segment structures and disease states however standardization of image acquisition techniques is still needed. Future imaging could allow noninvasive and serial monitoring of pathology as well as recurrence after therapeutic intervention.
Silva RNE, Chiou CA, Wang M, Wang H, Shoji MK, Chou JC, D'Souza EE, Greenstein SH, Brauner SC, Alves MR, Pasquale LR, Shen LQ. Microvasculature of the Optic Nerve Head and Peripapillary Region in Patients With Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma. J Glaucoma 2019;28(4):281-288.Abstract
PURPOSE: To assess optic nerve head (ONH) and peripapillary microvasculature in primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) of mild to moderate severity using swept-source optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA). MATERIALS AND METHODS: In a cross-sectional study, swept-source OCTA images were analyzed for 1 eye from each of 30 POAG patients with glaucomatous Humphrey visual field loss and 16 controls. The anatomic boundary of ONH was manually delineated based on Bruch's membrane opening and large vessels were removed from en face angiography images to measure vessel density (VD) and the integrated OCTA by ratio analysis signal (IOS), suggestive of flow, in the ONH and peripapillary region. POAG subgroup analysis was performed based on a history of disc hemorrhage (DH) matched by visual field mean deviation (MD). RESULTS: POAG (mean MD±SD, -3.3±3.0 dB) and control groups had similar demographic characteristics and intraocular pressure on the day of imaging. Groups did not differ in superficial ONH VD or flow indicated by IOS (P≥0.28). POAG eyes showed significantly lower VD (39.4%±4.0%) and flow (38.8%±5.6%) in deep ONH, peripapillary VD (37.9%±2.9%) and flow (43.6%±4.0%) compared with control eyes (44.1%±5.1%, 44.7%±6.9%, 40.7%±1.7%, 47.8%±2.5%, respectively; P≤0.007 for all). In the subgroup analysis, POAG eyes with (n=14) and without DH (n=16) had similar measured OCTA parameters (P>0.99 for all). CONCLUSIONS: The image processing methodology based on the anatomic boundary of ONH demonstrated compromised microvasculature in the deep ONH and peripapillary region in eyes with mild to moderate POAG, regardless of the history of DH.
Silva RNE, Shen LQ, Chiou CA, Shanbhag SS, Paschalis EI, Pasquale LR, Colby KA, Dohlman CH, Chodosh J, Alves MR. Glaucoma Management in Patients with Aniridia and Boston Type 1 Keratoprosthesis. Am J Ophthalmol 2019;Abstract
PURPOSE: To assess outcomes and glaucoma management in eyes with aniridia following Boston type 1 Keratoprosthesis (KPro) implantation. DESIGN: Retrospective, interventional comparative case series. METHODS: POPULATION: Patients with aniridia and patients with other preoperative diagnoses (excluding Stevens-Johnson syndrome, mucous membrane pemphigoid, and congenital disorders) who underwent KPro implantation at Massachusetts Eye and Ear with at least 2 years of follow-up. One eye per patient was selected based on the longer follow-up time. MAIN OUTCOME: Intermediate and long-term outcomes related to glaucoma. RESULTS: The aniridia (n=22) and comparison (n=61) groups had similar preoperative visual acuity (VA, mean ± standard deviation, 1.86±0.52 LogMAR, p=0.33) and follow-up time (65.6±26.3 months, p=0.25). Prior to KPro implantation, eyes with aniridia had more glaucoma (76.2%) and glaucoma surgery (57.1%) than comparison eyes (51.8%, p=0.053; 23.2%, p=0.005, respectively). More Ahmed valves were co-implanted with KPro in aniridia (47.6%) versus comparison eyes (17.9%, p=0.008). At final follow-up, more aniridia eyes had glaucoma (90.5%) than comparison eyes (64.3%, p=0.02), but the two groups had similar percentages of eyes with cup-to-disc ratio (CDR) >0.8 (23.8% vs. 30.4%, p=0.57) or CDR progression of ≥0.2 (42.9% vs. 44.6%, p=0.89, respectively). None of the eyes with prophylactic tube implantation developed glaucoma. Eyes with and without aniridia did not differ in post-KPro VA improvement (72.7%, 72.1%, p=0.96), and final VA (1.28±0.79 LogMAR, 1.23±0.98 LogMAR, p=0.51). CONCLUSION: Despite a higher glaucoma prevalence, eyes with aniridia achieved similar VA as comparison eyes with more than 5 years of mean follow-up time. Boston KPro offers satisfactory visual rehabilitation in aniridia when glaucoma is managed aggressively.
Simmons NL, Robb RM, Tybor DJ, Gilbert AL. Older age and larger cyst size in children with spontaneous rupture of periorbital dermoid cysts. J AAPOS 2019;Abstract
We analyzed clinical and histopathologic data of 97 pediatric patients who underwent excision of dermoid cysts. On review, 16.5% of the sample population demonstrated localized chronic inflammatory changes, including the presence of giant cells and epithelial disruption. These features were considered indicative of prior cyst rupture. Age at time of initial presentation was significantly older and cyst size was significantly larger in patients with histopathologic signs of previous rupture. Longer time to presentation and time to excision were associated with increased odds of spontaneous rupture.
Singh D, Thomas D. Advances in medical polymer technology towards the panacea of complex 3D tissue and organ manufacture. Am J Surg 2019;217(4):807-808.
Singh RB, Shergill S, Singh KP, Thakur S. Down and out: acquired oculomotor nerve palsy. BMJ Case Rep 2019;12(8)
Singh G, Ismail AM, Lee JY, Ramke M, Lee JS, Dyer DW, Seto D, Rajaiya J, Chodosh J. Divergent Evolution of E1A CR3 in Human Adenovirus Species D. Viruses 2019;11(2)Abstract
Adenovirus E1A is the first viral protein expressed during infection. E1A controls critical aspects of downstream viral gene expression and cell cycle deregulation, and its function is thought to be highly conserved among adenoviruses. Various bioinformatics analyses of E1A from 38 human adenoviruses of species D (HAdV-D), including likelihood clade model partitioning, provided highly significant evidence of divergence of HAdV-Ds into two distinct groups for the conserved region 3 (CR3), present only in the E1A 13S isoform. This variance within E1A 13S of HAdV-Ds was not found in any other human adenovirus (HAdV) species. By protein sequence and structural analysis, the zinc finger motif of E1A CR3, previously shown as critical for transcriptional activation, showed the greatest differences. Subsequent codon usage bias analysis revealed substantial divergence in E1A 13S between the two groups of HAdV-Ds, suggesting that these two sub-groups of HAdV-D evolved under different cellular conditions. Hence, HAdV-D E1A embodies a previously unappreciated evolutionary divergence among HAdVs.
Smith JR, Pe'er J, Belfort RN, Cardoso F, Carvajal RD, Carvalho C, Coupland SE, Desjardins L, Francis JH, Gallie BL, Gombos DS, Grossniklaus HE, Heegaard S, Jager MJ, Kaliki S, Ksander BR, Maeurer M, Moreno E, Pulido JS, Ryll B, Singh AD, Zhao J, Parreira A, Wilson DJ, O'Brien JM. Proceedings of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology and Champalimaud Foundation Ocular Oncogenesis and Oncology Conference. Transl Vis Sci Technol 2019;8(1):9.Abstract
The 2018 Ocular Oncogenesis and Oncology Conference was held through a partnership of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) and the Champalimaud Foundation. Twenty-one experts from international ocular oncology centers, from the Champalimaud Clinical Centre and the Champalimaud Foundation Cancer Research Program, and from patient advocacy organizations, delivered lectures on subjects that ranged from global ocular oncology, to basic research in mechanisms of ocular malignancy, to clinical research in ocular cancers, and to anticipated future developments in the area. The scientific program of the conference covered a broad range of ocular tumors-including uveal melanoma, retinoblastoma, ocular surface tumors, and adnexal and intraocular lymphomas-and pathogenesis and management were deliberated in the context of the broader systemic cancer discipline. In considering the latest basic and clinical research developments in ocular oncogenesis and oncology, and providing the opportunity for cross-talk between ocular cancer biologists, systemic cancer biologists, ocular oncologists, systemic oncologists, patients, and patient advocates, the forum generated new knowledge and novel insights for the field. This report summarizes the content of the invited talks at the 2018 ARVO-Champalimaud Foundation Ocular Oncogenesis and Oncology Conference.
Smits DJ, Elze T, Wang H, Pasquale LR. Machine Learning in the Detection of the Glaucomatous Disc and Visual Field. Semin Ophthalmol 2019;:1-11.Abstract
Glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide. Early detection is of utmost importance as there is abundant evidence that early treatment prevents disease progression, preserves vision, and improves patients' long-term quality of life. The structure and function thresholds that alert to the diagnosis of glaucoma can be obtained entirely via digital means, and as such, screening is well suited to benefit from artificial intelligence and specifically machine learning. This paper reviews the concepts and current literature on the use of machine learning for detection of the glaucomatous disc and visual field.
Somsen D, Heidary G. Rapid onset of orbital cellulitis after uncomplicated strabismus surgery. J AAPOS 2019;Abstract
Orbital cellulitis is extremely uncommon following strabismus surgery. When it occurs, the infection has been reported to present from day 1 to within 1 week following surgery and has the potential for significant morbidity postoperatively. We report the case of a 6-year-old boy presenting with unilateral orbital cellulitis growing group A Streptococcus pyogenes on postoperative day 1, after uncomplicated bilateral medial rectus recessions. The patient had two contacts with streptococcal pharyngitis at the time of surgery but was completely asymptomatic himself. We hypothesize that these contacts may have led to the rapid onset of his orbital cellulitis.
Stanwyck LK, Place EM, Comander J, Huckfeldt RM, Sobrin L. Predictive value of genetic testing for inherited retinal diseases in patients with suspected atypical autoimmune retinopathy. Am J Ophthalmol Case Rep 2019;15:100461.Abstract
Purpose: The clinical features of autoimmune retinopathy (AIR) can resemble and be difficult to differentiate from inherited retinal degenerations (IRDs). Misdiagnosis of an IRD as AIR causes unnecessary treatment with immunosuppressive agents. The purpose of this study is to calculate the predictive value of genetic testing for IRDs in patients with suspected AIR and provide clinical examples where genetic testing has been useful. Methods: We identified patients seen at MEEI between April 2013 and January 2017 for whom the differentiation of AIR vs. IRDs was difficult based on clinical assessment alone. All patients had some atypical features for AIR, but tested positive for anti-retinal antibodies. Within this group, we identified six patients who had genetic testing for IRDs with the Genetic Eye Disease panel for retinal genes (GEDi-R). We calculated the positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) of genetic testing in a population with approximately equal numbers of IRD and AIR patients. Results: Six patients had clinical features that made distinguishing between IRDs and AIR on a clinical basis difficult and were sent for genetic testing: four women and two men with a mean age of 59.5 years. In two of these six patients, genetic diagnoses were made based upon the identification of known pathogenic variants in the common IRD genes and . Two patients had variants of unknown significance within genes associated with IRDs, and the other two had no relevant genetic findings. Given the 60% sensitivity and 3% false positive rate for GEDi-R testing and assuming a 50% pre-test probability of having an IRD, the PPV for GEDi-R for detecting IRD is 95.2% and the NPV is 70.8%. Conclusions and Importance: In patients for whom the differential diagnosis of AIR and IRDs is unclear based on clinical information, genetic testing can be a valuable tool when it identifies an IRD, sparing the patient unnecessary immunosuppressive treatment. However, the test has a low NPV so a negative genetic testing result does not confidently exclude IRD as the true diagnosis.
Stanwyck LK, Moussa K, Chan W, Aitken PA, Sobrin L. Lack of Correlation between Number of Antiretinal Antibodies and Clinical Outcome Measures in Autoimmune Retinopathy Patients. Ophthalmol Retina 2019;3(11):1007-1009.
Storey PP, Tauqeer Z, Yonekawa Y, Todorich B, Wolfe JD, Shah SP, Shah AR, Koto T, Abbey AM, Morizane Y, Sharma P, Wood EH, Morizane-Hosokawa M, Pendri P, Pancholy M, Harkey S, Jeng-Miller KW, Obeid A, Borkar DS, Chen E, Williams P, Okada AA, Inoue M, Shiraga F, Hirakata A, Shah CP, Prenner J, Garg S, Garg S. The Impact of Prefilled Syringes on Endophthalmitis Following Intravitreal Injection of Ranibizumab. Am J Ophthalmol 2019;199:200-208.Abstract
PURPOSE: To compare the rates of infectious endophthalmitis following intravitreal injection of ranibizumab using prefilled syringes vs conventional preparation. DESIGN: Multicenter retrospective cohort study. METHODS: All eyes receiving intravitreal injection of 0.5 mg ranibizumab for retinal vascular diseases at 10 retina practices across the United States (2016 to 2017) and Japan (2009 to 2017) were included. The total numbers of eyes and injections were determined from billing codes. Endophthalmitis cases were determined from billing records and evaluated with chart review. Primary outcome was the rate of postinjection acute endophthalmitis. Secondary outcomes were visual acuity and microbial spectrum. RESULTS: A total of 243 754 intravitreal 0.5 mg ranibizumab injections (165 347 conventional and 78 407 prefilled) were administered to 43 132 unique patients during the study period. In the conventional ranibizumab group, a total of 43 cases of suspected endophthalmitis occurred (0.026%; 1 in 3845 injections) and 22 cases of culture-positive endophthalmitis occurred (0.013%; 1 in 7516 injections). In the prefilled ranibizumab group, 12 cases of suspected endophthalmitis occurred (0.015%; 1 in 6534 injections) and 2 cases of culture-positive endophthalmitis occurred (0.0026%; 1 in 39 204 injections). Prefilled syringes were associated with a trend toward decreased risk of suspected endophthalmitis (odds ratio 0.59; 95% confidence interval 0.31-1.12; P = .10) and a statistically significant decreased risk of culture-positive endophthalmitis (odds ratio 0.19; 95% confidence interval 0.045-0.82; P = .025). Average logMAR vision loss at final follow-up was significantly worse for eyes that developed endophthalmitis from the conventional ranibizumab preparation compared to the prefilled syringe group (4.45 lines lost from baseline acuity vs 0.38 lines lost; P = .0062). Oral-associated flora was found in 27.3% (6/22) of conventional ranibizumab culture-positive endophthalmitis cases (3 cases of Streptococcus viridans, 3 cases of Enterococcus faecalis) compared to 0 cases in the prefilled ranibizumab group. CONCLUSION: In a large, multicenter, retrospective study the use of prefilled syringes during intravitreal injection of ranibizumab was associated with a reduced rate of culture-positive endophthalmitis, including from oral flora, as well as with improved visual acuity outcomes.
Strauss RW, Kong X, Bittencourt MG, Ho A, Jha A, Schönbach EM, Ahmed MI, Muñoz B, Ervin A-M, Michaelides M, Birch DG, Sahel J-A, Sunness JS, Zrenner E, Bagheri S, Ip M, Sadda SV, West S, Scholl HPN, Scholl HPN. Scotopic Microperimetric Assessment of Rod Function in Stargardt Disease (SMART) Study: Design and Baseline Characteristics (Report No. 1). Ophthalmic Res 2019;61(1):36-43.Abstract
PURPOSE: To describe the study design and characteristics at first visit of participants in the longitudinal Scotopic Microperimetric Assessment of Rod Function in Stargardt Disease (SMART) study. METHODS: Scotopic microperimetry (sMP) was performed in one designated study eye in a subset of participants with molecularly proven ABCA4-associated Stargardt disease (STGD1) enrolled in a multicenter natural history study (ProgStar). Study visits were every 6 months over a period ranging from 6 to 24 months, and also included fundus autofluorescence (FAF). RESULTS: SMART enrolled 118 participants (118 eyes). At the first visit of SMART, the mean sensitivity in mesopic microperimetry was 11.48 (±5.05; range 0.00-19.88) dB and in sMP 11.25 (±5.26; 0-19.25) dB. For FAF, all eyes had a lesion of decreased autofluorescence (mean lesion size 3.62 [±3.48; 0.10-21.46] mm2), and a total of 76 eyes (65.5%) had a lesion of definitely decreased autofluorescence with a mean lesion size of 3.46 (±3.60; 0.21-21.46) mm2. CONCLUSIONS: Rod function is impaired in STGD1 and can be assessed by sMP. Testing rod function may serve as a potential outcome measure for future clinical treatment trials. This is evaluated in the SMART study.
Subramanian S, Maurer AC, Bator CM, Makhov AM, Conway JF, Turner KB, Marden JH, Vandenberghe LH, Hafenstein SL. Filling Adeno-Associated Virus Capsids: Estimating Success by Cryo-Electron Microscopy. Hum Gene Ther 2019;30(12):1449-1460.Abstract
Adeno-associated viruses (AAVs) have been employed successfully as gene therapy vectors in treating various genetic diseases for almost two decades. However, transgene packaging is usually imperfect, and developing a rapid and accurate method for measuring the proportion of DNA encapsidation is an important step for improving the downstream process of large scale vector production. In this study, we used two-dimensional class averages and three-dimensional classes, intermediate outputs in the single particle cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) image reconstruction pipeline, to determine the proportion of DNA-packaged and empty capsid populations. Two different preparations of AAV3 were analyzed to estimate the minimum number of particles required to be sampled by cryo-EM in order for robust calculation of the proportion of the full versus empty capsids in any given sample. Cost analysis applied to the minimum amount of data required for a valid ratio suggests that cryo-EM is an effective approach to analyze vector preparations.
Succar T, Grigg J, Beaver HA, Lee AG. ADVANCING OPHTHALMOLOGY MEDICAL STUDENT EDUCATION: INTERNATIONAL INSIGHTS AND STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCED TEACHING. Surv Ophthalmol 2019;Abstract
Enhancing medical student education in ophthalmology can lead to improved eye health care delivery and patient outcomes across all primary care and specialty disciplines., There has been a resurgence in interest in delivering high quality ophthalmic medical student education. This educational revival is both timely and topical. A general consensus has emerged that ,rather than focusing solely on increasing teaching time, strategies are needed to focus on how to optimize the limited time allotted to ophthalmology. All physicians should be prepared to provide competent and confident ophthalmic care based upon exciting innovations in ophthalmic curricula content, teaching methodologies, instructional design, learning objectives and assessment methods. We provide an update on new and innovative ophthalmic teaching and learning practices. We critically appraise and summarize novel educational strategies from around the world that can be universally applicable in enhancing ophthalmology teaching in medical school curricula. It is our hope that, while there is marginalization of ophthalmology training, these strategies can be used to further improve teaching and learning in the limited time available in medical curricula and provide an impetus for further research and innovations in teaching ophthalmology to medical students.
Sullivan DA. How to choose and conduct a research project: some advice for young investigators. Arq Bras Oftalmol 2019;82(1):1.
Sun JK, Jampol LM. The Diabetic Retinopathy Clinical Research Network (DRCR.net) and Its Contributions to the Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy. Ophthalmic Res 2019;:1-6.Abstract
Over the past two decades, the Diabetic Retinopathy Clinical Research Network (now known as the DRCR Retina Network) has contributed to multiple and substantial advances in the clinical care of diabetic eye disease. Network studies helped establish anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) agents as an effective alternative to panretinal photocoagulation for eyes with proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) and as first-line therapy for eyes with visual impairment for diabetic macular edema (DME), defined treatment algorithms for the use of intravitreal medications in these conditions, and provided critical data to understand how to better evaluate the diabetic eye using optical coherence tomography and other imaging modalities. Ongoing DRCR.net studies will address whether anti-VEGF therapy is effective at preventing vision-threatening complications in eyes with severe non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy, if photobiomodulation has a beneficial effect in eyes with DME, and whether initiation of DME treatment with bevacizumab and rescue with aflibercept can provide visual outcomes as good as those achieved with aflibercept alone. Future plans for the Network also include the expansion into non-diabetic eye disease in areas such as age-related macular degeneration.
Sun JK, Glassman AR, Beaulieu WT, Stockdale CR, Bressler NM, Flaxel C, Gross JG, Shami M, Jampol LM, Jampol LM. Rationale and Application of the Protocol S Anti-Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Algorithm for Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy. Ophthalmology 2019;126(1):87-95.Abstract
PURPOSE: To present the rationale, guidelines, and results of ranibizumab treatment for proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) in Diabetic Retinopathy Clinical Research Network (DRCR.net) Protocol S. DESIGN: Post hoc analyses from a randomized clinical trial. PARTICIPANTS: Three hundred five participants (394 study eyes) having PDR without prior panretinal photocoagulation (PRP). METHODS: Intravitreous ranibizumab (0.5 mg) versus PRP for PDR. Ranbizumab-assigned eyes (n = 191) received monthly injections for 6 months unless resolution was achieved after 4 injections. After 6 months, injections could be deferred if neovascularization was stable over 3 consecutive visits (sustained stability). If neovascularization worsened, monthly treatment resumed. Panretinal photocoagulation could be initiated for failure or futility criteria. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Neovascularization status through 2 years. RESULTS: At 1 month, 19% (35 of 188) of ranibizumab-assigned eyes showed complete neovascularization resolution and an additional 60% (113) showed improvement. At 6 months, 52% (80 of 153) showed neovascularization resolution, 3% (4) were improved, 37% (56) were stable, and 8% (13) had worsened since the last visit. Among eyes with versus without resolved neovascularization at 6 months, the median (interquartile range) number of injections between 6 months and 2 years was 4 (1-7; n = 73) versus 7 (4-11; n = 67; P < 0.001). Injections were deferred in 68 of 73 eyes (93%) meeting sustained stability at least once during the study; 62% (42 of 68) resumed injections within 16 weeks after deferral. At 2 years, 43% (66 of 154) showed neovascularization resolution, 5% (7) showed improvement, 23% (36) were stable, and 27% (42) had worsened since the last visit. Only 3 eyes met criteria for failure or futility through 2 years. CONCLUSIONS: The DRCR.net treatment algorithm for PDR can provide excellent clinical outcomes through 2 years for patients initiating anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy for PDR. When choosing between anti-VEGF and PRP as first-line therapy for PDR, treatment decisions should be guided by consideration of the relative advantages of each therapeutic method and anticipated patient compliance with follow-up and treatment recommendations.
Sun JK, Wang P-W, Taylor S, Haskova Z. Durability of Diabetic Retinopathy Improvement with As-Needed Ranibizumab: Open-Label Extension of RIDE and RISE Studies. Ophthalmology 2019;126(5):712-720.Abstract
PURPOSE: To evaluate the durability of diabetic retinopathy (DR) improvements after a change in ranibizumab dosing from monthly to individualized pro re nata (PRN) therapy. DESIGN: Pooled analysis of the open-label extension (OLE) of RIDE and RISE (clinicaltrials.gov identifiers, NCT00473382 and NCT00473330) patients with DR and diabetic macular edema (DME). PARTICIPANTS: Patients who completed 36-month participation in RIDE and RISE and entered the OLE. METHODS: In RIDE and RISE, patients (n = 759) were randomized 1:1:1 to ranibizumab 0.3 mg monthly, 0.5 mg monthly, or monthly sham injections with rescue macular laser available after 6 months, per protocol-specified criteria. After 24 months, sham patients crossed over to ranibizumab 0.5 mg monthly. After 36 months in the core studies, patients in the OLE (n = 500) could receive ranibizumab 0.5 mg PRN based on predefined DME re-treatment criteria. Diabetic retinopathy severity was evaluated photographically using the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study DR severity scale. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Change in DR severity from months 36 to 48 by re-treatment status. RESULTS: Among patients who entered the OLE, 121 of 500 (24%) did not require additional ranibizumab injections. Overall, 367 patients had evaluable DR at months 36 and 48. Among patients not requiring ranibizumab re-treatment from months 36 to 48 (88/367), 57% to 78%, 0% to 7%, and 22% to 36% experienced DR severity stability, 2-step or more improvement, and 2-step or more worsening, respectively. Among patients requiring ranibizumab re-treatment (279/367), 84% to 94%, 2%, and 3% to 14% experienced DR severity stability, 2-step or more improvement, and 2-step or more worsening, respectively. On average, vision improvements were maintained during the OLE regardless of change in DR severity. CONCLUSIONS: Diabetic retinopathy severity improvements with ranibizumab were maintained in over 70% of OLE patients after switching from ranibizumab monthly to an individualized ranibizumab 0.5 mg PRN dosing regimen. Because approximately one third of OLE patients experienced DR worsening, careful monitoring should be part of the long-term management of patients with DR.

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