Is your vision impaired due to diabetes? Let's talk about Vabysmo (Faricimab) treatment

If you have diabetes, you probably know that over time, it can affect your eyes. Blurred vision, floaters, and color blindness are common symptoms of this condition. You may have heard of eye injections as a treatment for this condition. These injections can improve vision and stop further damage to your eyes. Today, we're going to talk about one such new drug, which may be of great help to you.

How does this Vabysmo medicine work for the eyes?

Simply put, when a person with diabetes has high blood sugar levels for a long time, the delicate blood vessels inside the eye begin to be damaged. This damage occurs in the retina, the layer of the eye that processes images. We call this condition diabetic retinopathy .

These damaged blood vessels gradually leak fluid and blood into the retina. As the condition worsens, the eye tries to form new blood vessels to replace the damaged ones. But these new vessels are very weak, and they leak even more fluid.

So what is macular edema?

There is a special area in the retina called the macula . This is what helps us see things in front of our eyes, that is, our straight vision, clearly. As mentioned earlier, when fluid leaks from the blood vessels, this macula starts to swell. We call this diabetic macular edema .

This is when vision becomes blurry, double vision, black spots appear, and colors appear dim. Some people may even lose their vision completely.

What is special about Vabysmo?

The main goal of treating this condition is to stop the damage to the retina. There are several types of medications that are injected into the eye for this. Most of these medications work by blocking a protein called VEGF . Simply put, VEGF is a key factor that helps those unwanted, weak new blood vessels form. So when VEGF is blocked, the formation of new vessels is controlled.

The active ingredient in Vabysmo is Faricimab . This drug, like other drugs, blocks VEGF. But in addition to that, this drug does something else. That is, it blocks another protein called Ang-2 (angiopoietin-2) . When this Ang-2 protein increases in the eye, the blood vessels become unstable and they leak more fluid.

What did the research on this drug reveal?

Two large-scale clinical trials have been conducted to determine the safety and effectiveness of Vabysmo, involving a large number of people with diabetes and macular degeneration from different countries and ethnicities around the world.

In these trials, Vabysmo was compared with an already available drug called Aflibercept (Eylea) , which blocks only VEGF. The participants in the trial did not know which drug they were receiving. Everyone received several injections, but some people received fewer injections than others.

What are the results of the research?

The results are really encouraging.

Improvement of eyesight

After a year of treatment, the vision of those who took both Vabysmo and Aflibercept had improved significantly more than when the study began. This means that both drugs were equally effective in improving vision .

Number of injections required (this is the most important thing!)

This is where the biggest difference was seen.

In the first few months of the research, everyone was vaccinated once a month, but then the vaccination schedule was changed.

• Those who received Aflibercept continued to receive the vaccine every 8 weeks (that is, every 2 months) after the first 5 months.
• Those who received Vabysmo were treated according to a "personal dosing schedule," meaning each person's eye condition was assessed and the vaccine was given every 4, 8, 12, or 16 weeks, as appropriate.

The results showed that more than 70% of those who received Vabysmo only needed a shot every 12-16 weeks (that is, every 3-4 months) . Also, there was no difference in vision improvement between those who received the drug every 3-4 months and those who received the drug every 2 months.

Will the medicine continue to work after the first year?

Yes. This study was conducted over two years. What they found was that after two years, about 78% of the people who took Vabysmo only needed the medication every 3-4 months . And their vision remained as good as it had been in the first year.

Since eye damage from diabetes progresses over time, these results suggest that both Vabysmo and Aflibercept may help prevent long-term damage to the eye. Vabysmo may also achieve this result with fewer treatments.

How to get this treatment?

Vabysmo is a liquid. It is an intravitreal injection that is given directly into the eye by a trained doctor . You cannot do this at home.

When you start treatment, you will first receive 4 injections every 4 weeks . Your doctor will then examine your eyes and decide whether to continue the injections at 4, 8, 12, or 16 week intervals, depending on the condition of your eyes. Most people will need injections every 3-4 months.

During the injection, the doctor will use a small device to hold your eye open. Then, they will put drops in your eye to numb it and prevent infection. Then, the injection is given with a very fine needle. You will not feel any pain during this time.

Side effects and how to manage them?

Like any medicine, this one can have minor side effects.

• Common side effects: Your vision may be blurry for a short time after the injection. This is normal. Avoid driving or operating machinery during this time. Your vision will return to normal in a short time.

• Serious symptoms to watch out for: Very rarely, symptoms of some serious conditions may occur. You should definitely be aware of these.
• Black spots or streaks appear to be floating before the eyes.
• Flashes of light like lightning .
• Feeling as if a curtain is being drawn in front of the eyes.
• Severe eye pain .

Are there any problems with other medications?

There are currently no known interactions between Vabysmo and other medications.

But, this is very important: Be sure to tell your doctor about any other medications you are taking, including prescription medications, vitamins, herbal products, and traditional medicines.