Port delivery system with Ranibizumab implant

New implant technology creates a reservoir to continuously deliver medication into the eyes of people with “wet” age-related macular degeneration, improving eyesight and reducing the need for eye injections.

Researchers in the US developed the reservoir that is implanted in patients' eyes through a small incision and slowly releases medication over time. When it’s empty, physicians can replenish the medication without removing the reservoir.

"Current treatments require frequent visits to the doctor, commonly every four to six weeks for injections of medication, " says study lead Professor Peter Campochiaro from Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore. "This study shows that the implant is safe, effective, and may only require a clinic visit and refill every six months."

The findings, published in Ophthalmology journal, showed ‘a significant average improvement in the eyesight of patients’ after nine months of treatment. The report said further research is needed on larger groups of patients before the implant can be approved for commercial use.