Photodynamic therapy combined with anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy for pachychoroid neovasculopathy

This multicenter retrospective study was conducted to evaluate the 1-year treatment outcome of photodynamic therapy (PDT) combined with anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy for pachychoroid neovasculopathy (PNV). A total of 42 eyes of 42 patients with treatment-naive PNV who were treated with PDT combined with intravitreal injections of an anti-VEGF agent (ranibizumab or aflibercept) for 1 year. All eyes showed exudative and/or hemorrhagic changes that affected the fovea at baseline. After the initial combination therapy, subfoveal choroidal thickness (SCT) and central retinal thickness (CRT) were significantly reduced and were maintained as such for 12 months (P < 0.01 in SCT and CRT). The best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) (0.19 +/- 0.30 at baseline) significantly improved at 3 months (0.15 +/- 0.29, P < 0.05) and further improved at 12 months (0.10 +/- 0.30, P < 0.01) when compared to that at baseline. After the initial combination therapy, 32 eyes (76.2%) required no additional treatments for 12 months. The mean number of additional PDT and intravitreal injections of anti-VEGF agents was 0.1 +/- 0.3 and 0.9 +/- 1.9, respectively. Of the 42 eyes included in this study, 22 eyes (52.4%) had polypoidal lesions at baseline. No significant differences in SCT, CRT, or BCVA were observed at any time points between eyes with and without polypoidal lesions. Of 20 eyes without polypoidal lesions, only 1 eye (5.0%) needed additional treatments. PNV, especially without polypoidal lesions, can be treated effectively with PDT combined with anti-VEGF therapy with few sessions.

Automated summary

This study suggests that a combination of photodynamic therapy (PDT) and anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy can significantly improve visual acuity and reduce choroidal and retinal thickness in patients with pachychoroid neovasculopathy (PNV) in the short term, with effects maintained for up to 12 months.