Besides FDA-approved AMD treatments, there are still many investigational treatments that are under trial. These treatments are provided only if the patient acts as a volunteer to test their safety and effectiveness.
While Avastin has been used to treat colorectal cancer, it has not been approved to treat macular degeneration. Some ECPs only use Avastin in the form of off label. Studies show that Avastin brings positive results in AMD treatment. Like these FDA-approved treatments such as Lucentis and Macugen, Avastin also function by injection into the eye.
Another treatment aiming at stopping the abnormal blood vessel growth is named Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) Trap-Eye. This treatment was reported to be as effective as Lucentis for wet AMD.
Retaane treats advanced macular degeneration by attacking enzymes, which allows abnormal blood vessel growth. Left untreated, enzymes will weaken the walls of retinal blood vessels. Retaane performs in a way that is quite different from most of those AMD treatments. It is deposited behind the eye alongside the sclera and will be replaced every six months.
By preventing abnormal blood vessel development, Combretastatin is indicated to slow or halt myopia AMD progression, which affects young people with some eye diseases. The company is still carrying out clinical studies to demonstrate that whether the treatment is effective for AMD on old people.
Encapsulated Cell Technology (ECT) is designed to maintain sustained release of genetically engineered cells, in order to reduce retinal damage. Radiation treatment such as X-rays is also used to deal with AMD, which is still under early clinical studies.
AMD can be treated in another particular way. Since AMD is associated with slow blood flow and capillary vessel damage caused by macro-proteins and fatty components, procedures that can remove these harmful substances are effective. One of such procedures is the RHED procedure, which is also under trials.
Injected into a vein in the arm, the ICG dye is used to detect the presence and location of neovascular vessels. The Feeder Vessel Therapy also uses a high speed camera to trace the dye during its progression into the abnormal vessels.
AMD patients always have central blind spots, so that doctors have invented a tiny, implanted device to magnify images onto the retina. This treatment is known as implantable telescope, which has received significant clinical trial results.
Another potential AMD treatment is Transpupillary Thermotherapy, which combines an infrared laser and drug treatment. While its creator announces positive effects, some patients say it is dissatisfying.
Other researches focus on both artificial retinas and gene therapy, which are in early stages. Artificial retina can permanently recover the vision of AMD patients. Gene therapy is conceived to introduce specially encoded genes to alter AMD process.
For patients failed to get satisfied with all those moderate treatments. They can finally resort to an AMD surgery, which can remove the damaged tissues.
Article Source:http://vision.firmoo.com/eye-diseases/amd-treatments-trials-researches.html
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