New Retina Radio by Eyetube

Does metformin use reduce the risk of developing AMD in non-diabetic patients? Moderator Rebecca Soares, MD, and panelists Matt Starr, MD, and Nikisha Kothari, MD, review a decade-long case control-control study assessing risk of AMD in non-diabetic patients who have been taking metformin for any reason. They ask whether the study's blindspots undercut its findings, and speculate what other questions further research could answer.

We’ve got to keep our eye on the pipeline. What do the latest data tell us about two drug candidates? Durga Borkar, MD, MMCi, reviews data from a phase 2 study assessing the safety and efficacy ONL1204 (ONL Therapeutics) delivered prior to RRD surgery. Did injecting ONL1204, which prevents Fas activation, lead to any postsurgical differences? Alex Melamud stops by to discuss the phase 2/3 SAGA study assessing the safety and efficacy of gildeuretinol (Alkeus Pharmaceuticals), an oral agent for the treatment of geographic atrophy. Can this drug succeed where other oral options in retina have failed? 

The ELEVATUM study exclusively enrolled historically underrepresented patients in a study assessing faricimab (Vabysmo, Genentech/Roche) for DME. Were there any surprises in the data? Jeremiah Brown, MD, MS, sits down with New Retina Radio to review the philosophy behind the ELEVATUM study, discuss the study’s findings, and preview the next phases of the trial. And Eric Schneider, MD, joins the program to discuss the findings of a pivotal study assessing home OCT (Scanly, Notal Vision) in wet AMD patients. Is home OCT equivalent to in-office OCT when it comes to visualization? And do expert graders agree with an AI algorithm’s assessments of patient’s pathology?

Are retina doctors seeing more retinal pathology following infection or vaccination? Or is there nothing to see here? Rahul Khurana, MD, joins us to discuss the findings of various health care database analyses seeking to clarify whether COVID infection or vaccination were linked to retinal manifestations. Was there a clear—or even an opaque—connection between the two? And Paul Hahn, MD, PhD, sits down with us to explain how inflation, new realities of reimbursement, and step therapy directives are playing out in retina clinics in the United States. Inflation-adjusted reimbursement is declining—but can anything be done about it? And is step therapy actually saving the system any cash? 

We finally have two FDA-approved treatments for geographic atrophy (GA)—and yet, many retina specialists have been reluctant to embrace them. Join moderator John Kitchens, MD, as he explores this question with Miguel Busquets, MD, and Esther Kim, MD. Further in the episode, they gameplan patient conversations centered around choosing a treatment, ask how heavily to weigh safety when selecting a complement inhibitor, and preview the GA pipeline.

In this episode of the New Retina Radio Journal Club with VBS, Maura Di Nicola, MD; Sruthi Arepalli, MD, and Barton Blackorby, MD, discuss a recent study comparing endophthalmitis rates following anti-VEGF injections with pre-treatment using either 5% Povidone Iodine or 0.05% Chlorhexidine. They highlight how prefilled syringes can reduce the risk of endophthalmitis and explore the implications for clinical practice, including antiseptic protocols, patient sensitivities, and how to navigate conflicting study outcomes. Tune in for valuable insights that could influence your injection protocols.

Tens of thousands of real-world geographic atrophy patients were analyzed in a retrospective database study. How did GA progress—and how do these data inform our understanding of GA? Ted Leng, MD, stopped by the show to share the findings from his research on the natural history of GA, which he recently delivered on the podium in Lisbon. And Michael Klufas, MD, joined us for a discussion about another real-world study. This time, it was a retrospective multicenter outcomes analysis following multiple injections of high-dose aflibercept (Eylea HD, Regeneron) for treatment of wet AMD, DME, and DR. How did treatment-naïve patients fare compared with previously treated patients? And did treatment intervals improve? Stick with us to find out.

What is the relationship between retinal artery occlusion (RAO) and death, stroke, or myocardial infarction? Moderator Katherine Talcott, MD, is joined by Kyle Kovacs, MD, and Phoebe Mellen, MD, to explore the latest contribution to the literature on this topic. After the break, they discuss how best to manage patients who present to the clinic with an RAO, review academic centers' model for rapidly assessing patients with RAOs, and strategize how best to perform work-ups for patients who present to the retinal clinic with an RAO weeks after reporting reduced vision. 

Could inhibition of C1q effectively halt the progression of GA? Joel Pearlman, MD, PhD, sat down to discuss findings from the phase 2 ARCHER study, which evaluated ANX007 (Annexon) in patients with GA. He tells us what happened when patients were dosed with ANX007 for 1 year—and what occurred when patients stopped receiving treatment. And later, Dimitra Skondra, MD, fills us in on the latest research regarding potential interactions between metformin and AMD development in non-diabetic patients. Does the future of care include metformin as prophylaxis? Stick with us to find out. 

Does switching long-term wet AMD patients to faricimab (Vabysmo, Genentech/Roche) result in meaningful change to disease presentation? Join New Retina Radio Journal Club host Ben Young, MD, MS, and panelists Lediana Goduni, MD, and Josh Uhr, MD, as they break down a recent real-world study published in the literature. After the break, they review whether the study's findings could inform clinical decision-making, weigh the value of anatomic improvement that doesn't result in significant improvement in vision quality, and review their comfort with switching from legacy anti-VEGF agents to next-generation therapies.