Ranibizumab plus fufang xueshuantong capsule versus ranibizumab alone for exudative age-related macular degeneration

OBJECTIVE: To compare the efficacy of ranibizumab plus fufang xueshuantong capsule (cFXST) with the efficacy of ranibizumab alone in treatment of exudative age-related macular degeneration. METHODS: This prospective, randomized, controlled, pilot study included 38 eyes from 38 patients with exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD) that were randomly allocated into two cohorts of 19 eyes each: ranibizumab (C(r)) and ranibizumab plus cFXST (C(fr)). All patients received three monthly injections of ranibizumab. Patients in C(fr) also received daily oral supplementation of cFXST. Best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and thickness of the choroidal neovascularization-pigment epithelial detachment (CNV-PED) complex (measured by optical coherence tomography) were recorded at baseline and at 1 and 3 months after the first intravitreal injection of ranibizumab. RESULTS: In the C(fr), the CNV-PED complex thickness was reduced by 31.7% and 36.1% at 1 and 3 months, respectively; these reductions were significantly greater than the 19.7% and 24.2% reductions in the C(r). BCVA improvement was significantly greater in the C(fr) than in the C(r) after 3 months; the proportion of patients with functional response was also greater in the C(fr) than in the C(r) (16/16 vs. 8/17). CONCLUSION: Oral cFXST increases the efficacy of short-term ranibizumab treatment for exudative AMD.