Conbercept for patients with age-related macular degeneration: a systematic review

Abstract

Background: Conbercept is a novel vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitor for the treatment of wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD). This systematic review aims to assess the efficacy and safety of conbercept in the treatment of wet AMD.

Methods: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, VIP database, and Wanfang database were searched from their earliest records to June 2017. We included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating the efficacy and safety of conbercept in wet AMD patients. Outcomes included the mean changes from baseline in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) score (primary outcome), central retinal thickness (CRT), plasma level of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) over time, and the incidence of adverse events (AEs).

Results: Eighteen RCTs (1285 participants) were included in this systematic review. Conbercept might improve BCVA compared to triamcinolone acetonide [MD = 0.11, 95% CI (0.08, 0.15)], and reduce CRT compared to the other four therapies (conservative treatment, ranibizumab, transpupillary thermotherapy, and triamcinolone acetonide). The incidence of AEs in patients receiving conbercept was significantly lower than those receiving triamcinolone acetonide [RR = 0.25, 95% CI (0.09-0.72)], but was similar to the other therapies. Conbercept seemed to be more effective than ranibizumab in lowering the plasma level of VEGF [MD = - 15.86, 95% CI (- 23.17, - 8.55)].

Conclusions: Current evidence shows that conbercept is a promising option for the treatment of wet AMD. Nevertheless, further studies are required to compare the efficacy, long-term safety and cost-effectiveness between conbercept and other anti-VEGF agents in different populations.

Keywords: Conbercept; Ranibizumab; Systematic review; Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitor; Wet age-related macular degeneration.

Conflict of interest statement

Author’s information

The submitting author: Jiaxing Zhang. Postal Address: No.83 Zhongshandong Road, Nanming District, Guiyang, Guizhou Province, China.

Ethics approval and consent to participate

Not applicable. No ethical issues were involved in this study given that our data were based on published studies. Written informed consent for participation and ethical approval has been provided by original studies. Thus, all investigations analyzed in this meta-analysis have been carried out in compliance with the Helsinki Declaration.

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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Figures

Fig. 1

Flow diagram of study selection process for this systematic review

Fig. 2

Risk of bias summary

Fig. 3

The forest plot of best-corrected visual acuity

Fig. 4

The forest plot of central retinal thickness

Fig. 5

The forest plot of plasma level of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)

Fig. 6

The forest plot of the incidence of adverse events

Fig. 7

The forest plot of the incidence of increased intraocular pressure

Fig. 8

The forest plot of the incidence of ophthalmecchymosis