Tejal Desai & Robert Bhisitkul: Advancing the Treatment of Retinal Diseases

Robert Bhisitkul and Tejal Desai describe how treatment for retinal diseases leading to vision loss, such as age related macular degeneration, may be much improved by efforts to develop implantable devices for drug delivery.



Age related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of several retinal diseases that can lead to vision loss and, ultimately, blindness. Dr. Bhisitkul explains that the class of anti-VEGF biologic drugs (Lucentis, Avastin, Eylea) can treat AMD, however, ongoing, monthly injections into the eye are required for the drugs to be fully effective. There are a number of drawbacks to this treatment regime, many of which could be mitigated by the development of a drug delivery device for implantation in the eye. Dr. Desai describes the work done in her lab to develop an injectable, biocompatible and biodegradable device that has the right release kinetics to successfully deliver needed drugs to the retina of patients with AMD.