John Kitchens, MD, performed the world's first implant of a sustained-release treatment for age-related macular degeneration, ABC affiliate WTVQ reported Dec. 9.
The procedure was performed Nov. 30 at the Lexington (Ky.) Surgery Center, the report said. It is used to treat wet age-related macular degeneration, the leading cause of blindness in people over the age of 60.
The treatment, Genentech's Susvimo, was approved by the FDA in October, the report said. It is surgically implanted in the eye via injection and slowly releases vascular endothelial growth factor, which combats the eye disease. Patients receive two refill injections per year, as opposed to the previously available treatment's monthly injections of the growth factor.