Dark Adaptation as an Early Indicator of Response to Statin Therapy for Intermediate AMD (DELPHI)

January 22, 2026 updated by: John B. Miller, MD, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary
interventional trial for off label use of high dose atorvastatin 80 mg in intermediate AMD patients and correlate recovery response measured by dark adaptation recovery time with drusen volume reduction measured by SD-OCT

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Dark adaptation recovery time is a sensitive marker of AMD progression in intermediate AMD, largely owing to drusen volume providing a transport barrier that slows the transfer of nutrients between the choroid and photoreceptors2. Consequently, dark adaptation may provide an early indication of response vs. nonresponse, aiding case-by-case decisions on continuation of treatment when patients experience adverse side effects (e.g., elevated CPK or liver enzymes) or when atorvastatin provides insufficient lipid control in patients also at high-risk for cardiovascular disease (and switching to an alternative statin might be desirable).

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
21

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Phase 2

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Massachusetts
      • Boston, Massachusetts, United States, 02114

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

50 years to 85 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • All subjects with intermediate AMD diagnosis in one or both eyes will be considered, regardless the severity stage and subtype of disease in the other eye.

High-risk iAMD (numerous large, confluent drusen covering ≥ 0.5 disk area, with or without pigmentary changes but having no evidence of GA or CNV) in the study eye

Subjects can have either:

(i) Bilateral high-risk iAMD, or (ii) High-risk iAMD in one eye with GA and/or CNV in the fellow eye.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patient previously taking high dose Atorvastatin 80 mg
  • Patients previously taking other statins than high dose atorvastatin, in whom primary care provider (PCP) feels cannot be safely moved to high dose atorvastatin or those in which high dose atorvastatin is deemed contraindicated by PCP
  • Patients with known adverse reaction to statins
  • Patients with severe renal disease or multiple comorbidities
  • Age >85 years
  • Pregnancy
  • Patients with concomitant use of cyclosporine
  • Active uveitis;
  • Ocular infection;
  • Any retinopathy other than AMD;
  • Media opacities;
  • Refractive error equal or superior to 6 diopters (spherical equivalent);
  • Any previous retina surgery;
  • Other ocular surgery or intra-ocular procedure in the study eye (injection other than anti angiogenic injection, laser) within the 90 days prior to enrollment

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Other: Intermediate Age-Related macular degeneration patients

Subjects can have either:

  1. Bilateral high-risk iAMD
  2. High-risk iAMD in one eye with GA and/or CNV in the fellow eye No control arm
Drug: Atorvastatin 80mg
Patient will be receiving 80mg of Atorvastatin, if they are able to tolerate it from the start to the end of the study.
Other Names:
  • Lipitor 80 mg(Brand name)

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in Dark Adaptation recovery time measured by change in Rod Intercept time (RIT)
Time Frame: 18 Months
Determine weather improvement in dark adaptation recovery time or rod intercept time (RIT) can be used as an early indicator of positive response to high dose statin therapy for intermediate AMD patients
18 Months
Change in drusen volume measured by Spectral Domain OCT
Time Frame: 18 months
To measure and quantify improvement or positive response to high dose statin therapy in patients with intermediate AMD using drusen volume measured by SDOCT
18 months
To correlate visual functions of dark adaption with change in drusen volume
Time Frame: 18 months
Patient will have Dark Adaptation testing performed to check change in vision function with changes in drusen volume.
18 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
To correlate Best Corrected Visual Acuity and retinal structural evaluation of study patients
Time Frame: 18 months
Patient will have Best Corrected visual acuity, testing performed to check changes in vision function
18 months
To correlate change in contrast sensitivity and retinal structural evaluation of study patients
Time Frame: 18 months
Patient will have quantitative contrast sensitivity function testing performed to check change in vision function with changes in drusen volume.
18 months
To correlate change in microperimetry visual functional and retinal structural evaluation of study patients
Time Frame: 18 months
Patient will have microperimetry function testing performed to check change in this vision function with changes in drusen volume
18 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: John B Miller, MD, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Harvard Medical School

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
February 4, 2021

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
April 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
January 1, 2028

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
December 23, 2020

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
January 30, 2021

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
February 3, 2021

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
January 26, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
January 22, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
January 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 2020P001265

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Yes

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

Yes

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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