Photodynamic Therapy in Subfoveal Choroidal Neovascularisation

2002

Summary The exudative form of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of blindness among people over 50 years of age in the western world. In 2–10% of cases a subfoveal choroidal neovascularisation develops. Conventional laser treatment leads to an unspecific destruction of the CNV including adjacent retinal structures. In addition, significant and immediate vision loss occurs, particularly in cases with central, subfoveal localization of the CNV.Photodynamic therapy (PDT) employing photochemical activation of verteporfin as a photosensitizer induces selective occlusion of CNV with minimal damage to the neurosensory retina and does not impair visual acuity. It became ava…