Surgical Solutions to Achieve and Maintain Visual Gains in nAMD

Management of patients with retinal vascular diseases utilizing intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy has provided significant enhancements to visual acuity outcomes, but maintenance of these visual acuity gains requires frequent treatment and monitoring. The frequency of these clinical visits can be a challenge to sustain and places a considerable burden on the patient and caregivers―often resulting in undertreatment of disease due to loss of adherence. To address this unmet need, gene therapies and novel delivery systems that reduce the need for frequent treatment dosing have been developed. Gene therapies are currently being evaluated in ongoing clinical studies while the Port Delivery System (PDS) with ranibizumab was recently FDA-approved for the management of patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD). To achieve optimal efficacy and safety outcomes, these novel delivery modalities require unique surgical approaches for their implication into clinical practice. In this CME activity, experts in the field will discuss criteria that identify patients with nAMD as appropriate candidates for surgical delivery modalities, evaluate best practices and procedures that reduce complications when utilizing these modalities, and review appropriate techniques for the refill"exchange of the PDS with ranibizumab.