A new study published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology shows continuing anti-VEGF injections in patients with controlled neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) significantly increased macular atrophy progression.

Conducted by a team of California-based researchers, the retrospective cohort study analysed 59 eyes with nAMD with at least six-months of disease inactivity, grouped into two groups; one where anti-VEGF injections were stopped (holiday) and one where they were continued (maintenance). Using blue autofluorescence images via the Heidelberg Spectralis, the macular atrophy area was measured at initial injection, remission onset and the latest available remission point. The absence of subretinal haemorrhage, intraretinal fluid, subretinal fluid or subretinal hyper-reflective material associated with fluid on serial spectral domain OCT scans was used to confirm the inactivity of the disease (remission), the team said.

The macular atrophy in the maintenance group progressed faster than the holiday group during remission (p=0.03), they reported, concluding that, “Maintenance injections for nAMD in remission significantly increase progression of macular atrophy.”