Macugen®-Pegaptanib
This is the first FDA-approved anti-VEGF drug and has shown to be efficacious in preventing further loss of vision in patients with wet AMD. This drug is injected in the eye every 6 weeks. In studies comparing this treatment to no treatment at all, 70% of treated eyes versus 55% of untreated eyes lost less than 3 lines of vision at 1 year.
Recent studies have shown that combining Macugen with other therapies may be beneficial. Macugen's mechanism of action is different than that of Avastin and Lucentis. Some physicians are using this as maintenance therapy after initial treatment with Avastin or Lucentis.
