Pegaptanib sodium for ocular vascular disease.

Pegaptanib sodium (Macugen) is a selective RNA aptamer that inhibits vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) 165 , the VEGF isoform primarily responsible for pathologic ocular neovascularization and vascular permeability, while sparing the physiological isoform VEGF 121 . After more than 10 years in development and preclinical study, pegaptanib was shown in clinical trials to be effective in treating choroidal neovascularization associated with age-related macular degeneration. Its excellent ocular and systemic safety profile has also been confirmed in patients receiving up to three years of therapy. Early, well-controlled studies further suggest that pegaptanib may provide therapeutic benefit for patients with diabetic macular edema, proliferative diabetic retinopathy and retinal vein occlusion. Notably, pegaptanib was the first available aptamer approved for therapeutic use in humans and the first VEGF inhibitor available for the treatment of ocular vascular diseases.

Double prepapillary arterial loops associated with superior branch macular artery occlusion.

Prepapillary arterial loops are congenital vascular anomalies that have been noted to cause arterial occlusions. We report a case of superior branch macular artery occlusion in an eye with two independent prepapillary arterial loops, following a Valsalva-like mechanism.