Comparison of Short-Term Clinical Outcomes between Intravitreal Ranibizumab and Aflibercept in Retinal Angiomatous Proliferation

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: To evaluate the 6-month outcomes of intravitreal ranibizumab and aflibercept treatment for patients with retinal angiomatous proliferation (RAP). METHODS: A retrospective review of medical records of 28 patients (31 eyes) diagnosed with RAP was performed. All patients were initially treated with 3 consecutive intravitreal ranibizumab or aflibercept injections after diagnosis. Additional treatment was performed when exudation recurred. The best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and central foveal thickness were measured before the first injection and 3 and 6 months after the first injection. The values measured before the treatment were compared with those after treatment. RESULTS: Sixteen eyes were treated with ranibizumab and 15 eyes with aflibercept. The logarithm of minimal angle of resolution (log MAR) values of BCVA before the first injection and 3 and 6 months after the first injection were 0.78 +/- 0.50, 0.47 +/- 0.30 and 0.59 +/- 0.41 in the ranibizumab group and 0.96 +/- 0.52, 0.83 +/- 0.52 and 0.74 +/- 0.56 in the aflibercept group, respectively. Central foveal thickness was 315.75 +/- 115.44, 188.38 +/- 57.33 and 218.50 +/- 96.49 microm in the ranibizumab group and 249.00 +/- 74.88, 143.73 +/- 32.73 and 196.73 +/- 94.08 microm in the aflibercept group, respectively. BCVA was significantly improved and central foveal thickness was significantly reduced at 6 months (p < 0.05) compared to measurements before the first injection in both groups. However, BCVA improvement and central foveal thickness were not significantly different between the 2 groups. CONCLUSIONS: Both intravitreal ranibizumab and aflibercept treatments were beneficial for both normalizing macular thickness and improving visual acuity in patients with RAP. The efficacy of the 2 drugs was not noticeably different.