Treatment of neovascular age-related macular degeneration within 48 h from diagnosis improves long-term functional outcome

Purpose: To evaluate long-term visual and anatomical outcomes in neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) patients treated with anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) agents depending on the time delay from confirmed diagnosis to treatment initiation. Materials and methods: Seventy-three nAMD patients (73 eyes) treated with anti-VEGF agents for 12 months using the pro re nata regimen were included in this retrospective longitudinal study. Patients were split into 3 groups according to the time from diagnosis to first anti-VEGF injection: < 48 h (group 1); 48 h-7 days (group 2); > 7 days (group 3). Decimal best-corrected visual acuity (VA) and macular thickness (MT) were recorded at baseline and 1–2-, 3–4-, 6- and 12-month later. Furthermore, age, gender as well as the applied treatment and number of injections after 12 months of treatment were also registered and compared. Results: Long-term effect of the treatment demonstrated enhanced VA in group 1 patients compared with the rest of groups after 1–2-, 6-, and 12-month follow-up (P < 0.05). Positive effects of early treatment were additionally corroborated by the augmented percentage of patients with normal VA in the group 1 respect to the rest of groups over studied time points (P < 0.05). Moreover, the VA gain in nAMD at group 1 was obtained with a mean of 3.7 intravitreal injections over 1-year follow-up period. Regarding MT, non-significant difference was observed among groups. Conclusions: An early initial treatment with VEGF inhibitors is critical to achieve the best functional benefits of this therapy in new-onset nAMD patients.