The FDA approved a new drug for diabetes-related vision loss that CEENTA doctors helped research

The FDA approved the first and only medicine to treat patients with diabetic retinopathy, and two Charlotte Eye Ear Nose & Throat Associates, P.A. doctors were involved in its study.

The drug, Lucentis has been determined to not be worse than laser treatment for Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy (PDR). Laser therapy, the current treatment, can cause a loss of side and night vision.

Diabetic retinopathy is the most common diabetic eye disease, affecting nearly 7.7 million people in the United States. It develops when blood vessels in the retina change, sometimes swelling and leaking fluid or closing off completely. Sometimes abnormal new blood vessels grow out of the retina. These can cause severe vision loss from bleeding into the vitreous gel located in the middle cavity of the eye, which can be associated with scar tissue formation that can detach the retina (the lining of the back of the eye that works like the film in a camera). A surgical procedure called a vitrectomy is needed to clear the blood and, if present, repair the detached retina.

The drug was given priority review status, meaning the FDA determined it has the potential to provide significant improvements in the safety and efficacy of the treatment of a serious disease.

The study includes 305 people nationwide – 20 of whom were CEENTA patients – with proliferative diabetic retinopathy in one or both eyes. Participants are at least 18 years old and have either type 1 or type 2 diabetes.

The Diabetic Retinopathy Clinical Research Network conducted the trial, which was funded by the National Institute of Health’s National Eye Institute.

This blog is for informational purposes only. For specific medical questions, please consult your physician.