Age-related macular degeneration, especially the neovascular form of the disease, is the
leading cause of blindness in elderly people in developed countries. Thermal
photocoagulation is still the preferred treatment for choroidal neovascularization that does
not involve the fovea, but it is suitable for only a small number of patients and it can lead to
immediate loss of visual acuity. Photodynamic therapy with use of photochemical light
activation of verteporfin as a photosensitizer (verteporfin therapy) has been shown to be …