Research Update:

Jeremiah Brown, Jr., MS, MD, from Retina Consultants of Texas, along with eight other large retina practices, are collaborating on this research project funded by the Macular Degeneration Association.

The Derby and Oaks, as well as the Gather 1 and Gather 2 clinical trials, demonstrated that inhibition of the cascade of inflammation caused by the complement family of proteins in the retina can slow the progression of geographic atrophy, the end-stage form of dry macular degeneration. In clinical practice, many of us have been surprised to find that not only does the medication slow the progression of geographic atrophy, but some patients expressed improvement in the quality of their vision. We desired to understand how frequently this occurs.

We conducted a retrospective study, examining patients treated with Syfovre or Izervay for geographic atrophy from eight large Retina practices. Patient visits occurred from March 2023 through August 2025. 1821 patients were identified who were treated with Syfovre. 819 patients treated with Izervay were identified. 20% of patients had one line improvement in visual acuity, following their first Syfovre injection, and 13% of patients had one line or more improvement after two injections with Syfovre. 17% of patients treated with Izervay improved by one or more lines of vision after the first injection. 12% of patients had improvement in visual acuity over two consecutive visits.

These results demonstrate that not only do these medications slow the progression of the disease, but in some patients, visual acuity may actually improve after starting treatment. Studies are underway to better understand which patients are expected to improve, and why this occurs.

There will be more updates in the Fall Newsletter. If you haven’t signed up for this free newsletter, here is the link: https://macularhope.org/. Scroll to the bottom of the page and fill out the short form.