Cataract surgery appears beneficial for patients with wet AMD

The risks and benefits of cataract surgery in eyes with neovascular AMD have been widely debated since the 1970s. While compelling evidence from the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) showed cataract surgery is not associated with the progression of dry AMD, the debate continues over the safety of cataract surgery in the setting of neovascular AMD.

To learn more, the authors of this retrospective analysis evaluated visual outcomes after cataract surgery in patients with wet AMD receiving monthly ranibizumab injections as part of the ANCHOR and MARINA trials. They evaluated treated eyes, fellow eyes, and eyes of non-ranibizumab patients.

At three months postop, visual acuity improved by a mean of 10.4 letters in ranibizumab-treated eyes. There were no statistically significant or clinically significant differences in the change in visual acuity from the redefined baseline among the three groups undergoing cataract extraction.

The data suggest that cataract extraction should be considered in neovascular AMD patients with visually significant cataracts to help obtain the best possible visual acuity in conjunction with anti-VEGF therapy.