New Treatment for Wet Age-Related Macular Degeneration in FDA Clinical Trials

The NeoVista Vidion ANV Therapy System is currently undergoing phase 3 clinical trials for FDA approval. The Vidion system is used to treat wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD). It is an epimacular brachytherapy device that delivers a single dose of therapeutic radiation according to NeoVista. The current treatment for wet AMD involves repeated injections of drugs known as anti-VEGFs, which work again Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor. NeoVista's Vidion System delivers a targeted dose of strontium-90 beta inonizing radiation to the area of the retina that is affected. Hopefully, the Vidion System will provide a practical alternative to the anti-VEGF injections. In addition to the device offering only a single dose of radiation, it also reduces systemic radiation exposure and exposure of neighboring tissues to radiation. The Vidion system has been used to treat European patients although details of the outcomes of the treatments were not available. Andrea Schumann Staff Writer