
In a world first, researchers at the Centre for Eye Research Australia (CERA) will trial a new laser therapy aimed at stopping the progression of the sight threatening disease, age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
Head of Macular Research at CERA, Professor Robyn Guymer said the trial is particularly exciting because unlike existing AMD treatments, the laser therapy targets the disease in its early stages, before sight is lost.
“Currently, when a patient is diagnosed with early AMD, they’re told that nothing can be done until the disease reaches its late stages, by which time some patients have suffered irreversible vision loss,” Professor Guymer said.
“In applying the laser therapy we hope to halt, or partially reverse, the progression of AMD before it threatens a patient’s sight”.
Professor Guymer said the treatment involves a specially designed novel laser device that delivers a controlled nanosecond dose of laser energy into the eye.
“Preliminary research suggests that the application of retinal regeneration laser therapy to the affected eye can eliminate the yellow deposits, known as ‘drusen,’ which are present in the retinal tissue of people with AMD,” she said.
“In eliminating the drusen from a patient’s retina, we hope to reverse the degenerative processes caused by the disease”.
“If successful, the laser therapy will be a major breakthrough in AMD treatment and will potentially benefit millions of people world-wide”.
AMD is a progressive disease affecting the central area of the retina called the macula. Fifteen per cent of people over 50, or half a million Australians, live with the early stages of the disease. It is the leading cause of vision loss in Australia and is estimated to cost the community more than 2.6 billion dollars annually.
The study, to be conducted at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital, will involve 50 patients with early AMD. The trial is being conducted by CERA in partnership with Ellex Research & Development Pty Ltd. CERA incorporates the University of Melbourne’s Department of Ophthalmology.
The Department of Innovation, Industry and Regional Development (DIIRD) recently awarded CERA just over half a million dollars under Victoria’s Science Agenda Investment Fund to conduct the clinical trial.
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