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Purpose
To investigate the 1-year outcomes of monthly intravitreal injections of ranibizumab for 3 months followed by an as-needed reinjection schedule to treat polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV) in Japanese patients.
Design
Prospective, consecutive case series.
Methods
Eighty-five eyes of 82 consecutive Japanese patients with na?ve symptomatic PCV received monthly intravitreal injections of ranibizumab for 3 months followed by an as-needed reinjection schedule. Eighty-one eyes (95 % ) followed for 1 year were studied.
Results
A mean of 4.2 ¡À 1.3 (mean ¡À standard deviation) injections were administered over 1 year. Twenty-three of 81 eyes (28 % ) did not require additional injections and 32 eyes (40 % ) required only 1 injection after the 3 monthly injections. The mean (¡À standard error) logarithm of minimal angle of resolution (logMAR) visual acuity (VA) at baseline was 0.59 ¡À 0.37 and improved to 0.37 ¡À 0.30 (P = .001). Thirty eyes (37 % ) and 5 eyes (6 % ), respectively, had improved and decreased VA of 0.3 or more logMAR unit. Indocyanine green angiography showed that the polypoidal lesions resolved in 21 eyes (26 % ) and 32 eyes (40 % ) 3 months and 1 year after the first injection, respectively. Abnormal choroidal vessels remained in all eyes.
Conclusions
Monthly injections of ranibizumab for 3 months to treat PCV improved the VA, and a reinjection schedule based on need maintained the improved VA. The polypoidal lesions tended to improve over 1 year, whereas abnormal choroidal vessels remained in all eyes. Further long-term follow-up is needed to determine the efficacy of ranibizumab therapy for PCV.
