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(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- A sight-related complication of diabetes may be stopped in its tracks by a drug already used to treat another condition leading to blindness.
Johns Hopkins researchers who tested ranibizumab (Lucentis) in 10 diabetics with early signs of diabetic retinopathy found beneficial effects in all 10.
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After several months of the treatments, every patient in the study was able to read at least two additional lines on the standard eye chart.
The drug, which is already being used to treat macular degeneration, works by targeting a protein called vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). VEGF promotes the growth of new blood vessels and is often released in people with diabetes because high blood sugar levels damage existing vessels in the eye, cutting off the oxygen supply to the tissues. But the retina is one body organ where new vessels do more harm than good because they block light from getting to the back of the eye.
The patients in this study were suffering from the earliest signs of diabetic retinopathy, called macular edema. "We've suspected for awhile that ranibizumab's ability to shut down VEGF's signaling would do the trick because it's highly likely that VEGF is the culprit when it comes to diabetic macular edema," reports study author Quan Dong Nguyen, M.D., M.Sc.
Now, Dr. Nguyen and his colleagues plan conducting a larger study to see if the treatment, which is delivered via injections to the retina, will have any lasting effects in people at risk of losing their sight to diabetes.
This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, who offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, go to: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.
SOURCE: American Journal of Ophthalmology, 2006;142:961-969
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