Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31259835›Full record

ArticleJournal of the Chinese Medical Association : JCMA2019

Priority options of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor agents in wet age-related macular degeneration under the National Health Insurance Program.

Yu-Bai Chou, Meng-Jou Chen, Tai-Chi Lin, Shih-Jen Chen, De-Kuang Hwang

Open access · hybridAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of the Chinese Medical Association : JCMA, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
1.5field-weighted citation impact, top 19% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 10 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Yu-Bai ChouDepartment of Ophthalmology, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
Meng-Jou ChenDepartment of Ophthalmology, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
Tai-Chi LinDepartment of Ophthalmology, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
Shih-Jen ChenDepartment of Ophthalmology, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
De-Kuang HwangDepartment of Ophthalmology, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
Taipei Veterans General Hospital · TWNational Taipei University · TWNational Yang Ming Chiao Tung University · TWNational Yang Ming Chiao Tung University · TW

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundAge-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a leading cause of blindness worldwide, for which intravitreal injection of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is the primary treatment option. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the prioritization of anti-VEGF agents for wet AMD under the National Health Insurance (NHI) Program, and their clinical outcomes.

methodsPatients who were diagnosed with active choroidal neovascularization caused by AMD, and who met the criteria for reimbursement for anti-VEGF therapy by the NHI program in Taiwan between August 1, 2014 and May 31, 2015, were included in the study. Factors potentially influencing the choice of treatment agent were analyzed, and clinical outcomes were compared between the two different agents and their protocols.

resultsA total of 166 treatment applications in 166 eyes from 159 patients were enrolled in the study. Age, laterality, presence of retinal pigment epithelial detachment, history of hypertension, coronary artery disease, and cerebral vascular accidents were significantly associated with the selection of the anti-VEGF agent. Treatment patterns and clinical outcomes were similar between the patients treated with ranibizumab and those treated with aflibercept. Significantly fewer injections were given during the follow-up period in those treated with aflibercept.

conclusionUnder the restrictive insurance program in Taiwan, more patients and ophthalmologists chose to treat wet AMD using aflibercept. However, in clinical practice, no significant differences in efficacy or clinical outcomes were found between the patients treated with ranibizumab and those treated with aflibercept.

Indexed as

AgedAged, 80 and overFemaleHumansMaleNational Health ProgramsRanibizumabReceptors, Vascular Endothelial Growth FactorRecombinant Fusion ProteinsRetrospective StudiesTaiwanVascular Endothelial Growth Factor AWet Macular DegenerationafliberceptRanibizumabReceptors, Vascular Endothelial Growth FactorRecombinant Fusion ProteinsVascular Endothelial Growth Factor A

Identifiers

PMID31259835
PMCPMC13048214
OpenAlexW2954738363

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.