Macular Degeneration

This study is for people who have geographic atrophy due to age-related macular degeneration (AMD). AMD happens when the macula, the light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye called the retina, becomes damaged and causes a person's central vision to worsen. Geographic atrophy is an advanced form of AMD where cells in the retina waste away and die. Over time this can lead to permanent loss of vision. Avacincaptad pegol can help slow down the worsening or progression of geographic atrophy. Avacincaptad pegol is a treatment approved in the US to treat geographic atrophy. This study is about collecting information on how people with geographic atrophy are treated in routine clinical practice. This includes recording any medical problems from avacincaptad pegol. This is known as an observational study. Information will be collected from the peoples' medical records during and after treatment. The people in this study will have geographic atrophy in 1 or both eyes and they and their doctor have decided they will be treated with avacincaptad pegol. The individual's doctor decides on treatment, not the study sponsor (Astellas). People that want to take part in the study will have eye examinations that they would usually have as part of their routine care. People will also be asked to complete surveys about their eye health. These surveys will occur when treatment starts and then every 6 months for the first 2 years. After 2 years the surveys will happen once a year. The people on the study can take part if their doctor provides treatment with avacincaptad pegol and they want to continue with the study. The people on the study can take part for around 5 years.

Researchers are looking for new ways to treat neovascular age-related macular degeneration (NVAMD). Available standard (usual) treatments for NVAMD, such as aflibercept, may not work for every person. Researchers want to learn if a trial medicine called tiespectus (also called MK-8748 or EYE201) can treat NVAMD. The goal of this trial is to learn if tiespectus works as well as aflibercept to treat NVAMD.

Researchers are looking for new ways to treat neovascular age-related macular degeneration (NVAMD). Available standard (usual) treatments for NVAMD, such as aflibercept, may not work for every person. Researchers want to learn if a trial medicine called tiespectus (also called MK-8748 or EYE201) can treat NVAMD. The goal of this trial is to learn if tiespectus works as well as aflibercept to treat NVAMD.

This study will evaluate the use of autologous bone marrow derived stem cells (BMSC) for the treatment of retinal and optic nerve damage or disease.

The purpose of this study is to assess the long-term safety and tolerability after an intravitreal injection (a shot of medicine into the eye) of JNJ-81201887 administered in parent clinical studies.

Central vision loss from macular degeneration creates blind spots that impair reading, face recognition, and navigation. Individuals must learn to use peripheral vision, requiring retraining of eye movements. Our preliminary research using high-speed eye tracking demonstrated that people with larger scotomas have impaired eye movement control, and that single-session visual feedback training showed limited immediate benefit, though combining feedback types showed promise. This study will evaluate whether extended binocular training (5 weekly sessions) with multimodal feedback improves eye movement control in 8-15 participants with bilateral central vision loss. Unlike conventional monocular rehabilitation systems, our approach trains both eyes simultaneously using real-time visual and auditory feedback during saccadic and smooth pursuit tasks. Participants will receive gaze-contingent scotoma awareness feedback, preferred retinal locus feedback, and auditory cues while performing eye tracking exercises. Primary outcomes include saccadic accuracy (latency, landing error, amplitude) and smooth pursuit parameters (gain, tracking accuracy). Secondary outcomes include contrast sensitivity and self-reported visual function. Success could establish an evidence base for accessible home-based training using virtual reality technology, potentially benefiting millions with macular degeneration.

This is a retrospective, multicenter, observational study designed to develop and validate an artificial intelligence (AI) system capable of detecting and classifying major ophthalmic diseases (glaucoma, cataract, diabetic retinopathy, and other retinal pathologies) in the Costa Rican population. The study will use approximately 15,000 existing medical images from digital archives of two ophthalmic centers in Costa Rica, without active participant recruitment or capture of new images. The primary motivation is that AI systems developed in other countries (primarily Asian, European, or North American populations) do not necessarily perform with the same accuracy when applied to Latin American populations. This study seeks to establish a precedent for the importance of locally validating any medical AI technology before clinical implementation.

A greater understanding of plasticity after central vision loss can inform new therapies for treating low vision and has the potential to benefit millions of individuals suffering from low vision. The treatment of low vision is particularly relevant to the mission of the NEI to support research on visual disorders, mechanisms of visual function, and preservation of sight. The comparison of different training and outcome factors is in line with the NIMH RDOC framework and studies in an aging population are consistent with the mission of the NIA.

The objective of this study is to evaluate the safety and image quality of the investigational dye, MB-102, compared to the control dye (fluorescein sodium) in healthy and diseased eyes using fluorescent angiography for retinal vascular disease diagnosis and monitoring.

If the subject who has nAMD voluntarily agrees to participate in this clinical study by signing the informed consent form, screening assessments will be conducted within 4 weeks prior to the first dose of the investigational drug. During the screening visit, the eligibility of the subject will be assessed and one study eye will be selected. If both eyes are eligible, the eye with the worst best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) at screening will be chosen. However, if the investigator determines that the other eye requires more urgent treatment for clinical reasons, that eye may be selected as the study eye. After screening assessments and evaluation based on inclusion/exclusion criteria, eligible subjects will be enrolled. Vabysmo® 6 mg (0.05 mL) will be administered via intravitreal injection every 4 weeks (monthly) for a total of 4 doses during the initial loading period. After the loading dose, patients will undergo disease activity assessment based on imaging and visual acuity (VA) outcomes followed by the IP administration at Week 20. The treatment interval will be determined based on disease activity assessed at Week 20, depending on the results, the subsequent administration may be scheduled at Week 28 or Week 32, at the investigator's discretion. Thereafter, the dosing interval may be further adjusted in 4-week increments, either extended or shortened, according to imaging and visual outcomes. Throughout the clinical study, patients will need to visit the study site at least 10 times, including the screening visit. The number of intravitreal injections administered will be 4 doses during the initial loading period and up to 5 doses during the treat-and-extend (T\&E) period (Weeks 20, 28, 36, 44, 52). Thus, the total number of injections during the study will range from a minimum of 7 to a maximum of 9 injections. If the non-study eye also has nAMD, treatment with a locally approved therapy may be administered outside the scope of this study.

The purpose of this study is to test whether a kind of brain stimulation called anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (a-tDCS) can be combined with perceptual learning to improve the ability of people with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) or juvenile macular degeneration (JMD) to read words presented to them on a computer screen better than if perceptual learning alone were used. In addition, secondary measures of visual acuity will also be examined to determine whether brain stimulation can allow patients to resolve finer details of an image. The proposed treatment is the application of a-tDCS onto the participant's head, with brain stimulation aimed at Primary Visual Cortex toward the occipital pole, while patients undergo six separate sessions of training. The investigators will test the ability of participants to read words before the start of the training sessions (pre test) and after the completion of all training sessions (post test). This is a between-subjects design, and half of the participants will receive true stimulation, and the other half will receive sham stimulation. The difference between the pre and post tests when receiving active stimulation will be compared to the difference when receiving sham stimulation, because the sham stimulation is not expected to influence reading beyond a placebo. The aim of the study is to examine the potential of concurrent brain stimulation and perceptual learning as an effective treatment for macular degeneration that may be used in conjunction with more traditional eye-based interventions. The investigators hypothesize that the brain stimulation will enable higher performance in the reading task after and secondary measures after perceptual training due to an increase in the cortical excitability of the stimulated brain cells.

This prospective, observational investigation seeks to delineate the interplay between chromatic vision deficits and both functional visual outcomes and anatomical retinal biomarkers in individuals affected by Inherited Retinal Dystrophies (IRDs). The study will recruit approximately 200 subjects, encompassing a heterogeneous population of IRD patients-spanning a range of genotypes and clinical severities-as well as control participants devoid of retinal pathology. All enrolled individuals will undergo a standardized battery of evaluations, including quantitative color vision assessment, best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) determination, and advanced multimodal retinal imaging. The principal aim is to characterize the relationship between impairments in color discrimination and morphologic disruptions within the outer retinal layers, with particular emphasis on the continuity and reflectivity of the ellipsoid zone (EZ)-historically referred to as the inner segment/outer segment (IS/OS) junction-assessed through spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). Further, the study will explore associations between chromatic perceptual deficits and underlying genetic mutations, mutation patterns specific to IRD subtypes, and the influence of patient age on the severity and progression of color vision loss. A key secondary objective is the clinical appraisal and validation of a novel diagnostic modality, the Moji Low-Vision Color Discrimination Test (Moji Test), which is specifically engineered to quantify residual color perception in individuals with advanced central visual impairment. The test's discriminatory capacity will be benchmarked against established color vision testing paradigms to assess its reliability, clinical sensitivity, and suitability for implementation in populations with severe visual acuity reduction. By incorporating a genetically and phenotypically diverse IRD cohort, the study is designed to enable granular, stratified analyses that will refine the understanding of structural-functional correlations in hereditary retinal disease. The inclusion of a control group with preserved retinal architecture and normal color vision function will provide essential normative baselines for comparative evaluation and statistical inference.

Reading performance in patients with Central Vision Loss will be measured with and without missing text being remapped to different parts of the visual field in a variety of different reading tasks.

Macular edema in diabetes, defined as retinal thickening within two disc diameters of the center of the macula, results from retinal microvascular changes that compromise the blood-retinal barrier, causing leakage of plasma constituents into the surrounding retina and consequently retinal edema. Thickening of the basement membrane and reduction in the number of pericytes are believed to lead to increased permeability and incompetence of the retinal vasculature. This compromise of the blood-retinal barrier leads to the leakage of plasma constituents into the surrounding retina with subsequent retinal edema. Hypoxia produced by this mechanism can also stimulate the production of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) increases retinal vascular permeability, causes breakdown of the blood-retina barrier and results in retinal edema. Diabetic macular edema (DME) is the most common cause of visual reduction in patients with Diabetes Mellitus. The prevalence of DME globally is around 6.8 %. Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) is the most common microvascular complication of diabetes and the leading cause of blindness worldwide. DME is a complication of diabetic retinopathy that affects the macula, which is located at the center of the retina and responsible for central vision. Bangladesh is the 10th country in the world for the number of adults living with diabetes with some 7.1 million (5.3-12.0). In Bangladesh, it is therefore expected that diabetic secondary complications, like DR, will increase along with the rising trend of diabetes mellitus. The use of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies has revolutionized in the treatment of many diseases. In recent years, millions of patients have been successfully treated with these biological agents. Ranibizumab is one such therapeutic monoclonal antibody for intraocular use. Ranibizumab is a humanized, recombinant, immunoglobulin G1 monoclonal antibody fragment against vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A) and thus prevents choroidal neovascularization. The small size of ranibizumab allows for enhanced diffusion into the retina and choroid.

This trial will study the safety and efficacy of intravenous and sub-tenon delivery of cultured allogeneic adult umbilical cord derived mesenchymal stem cells for the treatment of non-arteritic ischemic optic neuropathy

The goal of this observational study is to assess the reliability and validity of the 9-object MLSDT for evaluation of participants with moderate to severe vision impairment when tested without a wearable low-vision magnifying aid (eGlasses) and then with eGlasses. These results will be compared to ETDRS testing results for the same participants without eGlasses and then with eGlasses. Two cohorts will consist of participants who have vision loss due to STGD or geographic atrophy (GA) due to age-related macular degenerations (AMD). Normally sighted participants will provide a control group.

This study was conducted to investigate the levels of ocular biomarkers from the patients with chorioretinal diseases including diabetic retinopathy, retinal vascular diseases, age-related macular degeneration (dry and wet), and retinal degeneration.

The New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF) Research Institute is performing this research to accelerate diverse disease research using cells from the body (such as skin or blood cells) to make stem cells and other types of cells, conduct research on the samples, perform genetic testing, and store the samples for future use. Through this research, researchers hope to identify future treatments or even cures for the major diseases of our time.

The goal of this clinical study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of novel stem cell formulation in patients having Geographic Atrophy (GA) Secondary to Dry Age-related Macular Degeneration (d-AMD). The main questions it aims to answer are: * Safety and tolerability of the novel stem cell formulation * Potential efficacy of the novel stem cell formulation Participants will receive a single subretinal injection in their study eye and followed up for safety. This is an India only study and the product is developed indigenously.

This study is being conducted to assess the safety and efficacy of the VIS, LLC (VIS) Opti-K Low Vision Aid Device and treatment to provide vision improvement to patients with age-related macular degeneration.

In this pilot study we want to investigate morphological features acquired by the novel image modality and gain information regarding disease pathomechanism, development and future possible influence on disease management for patients affected by those diseases.

This project intends to perform autologous transplantation of induced pluripotent stem cell-derived retinal pigment epithelium (iPSC-RPE). The clinical-grade RPE will be transplanted into subretinal space to treat refractory age-related macular degeneration. The efficacy and safety of RPE transplants to treat macular degeneration will be monitored and analyzed with results from EDTRS, BCVA, OCT, ERG, microperimetry, and fluorescein angiography, before and after the treatment.