[PGE1 in senile macular degeneration. A pilot study]

To determine whether PGE1 can improve retinal function a pilot study was carried out with seven patients (five women and two men) aged between 70 and 76 years who were suffering from a dry senile macular degeneration. The intravenous infusions of two ampoules of Prostavasion (PGE1) were given twice a day (infusion time: 2 hours per infusion) over three to five weeks (average four weeks). Retinal function was determined before and after treatment and finally again three months later one the basis of five criteria (subjective visual capacity, visual acuity, foveal threshold, static perimetry). The study showed that the subjective visual capacity had increased in six of the seven patients, the sensitivity of the foveal threshold in five, the average retinal sensitivity in two, and the average macular sensitivity in one. These results show that PGE1 probably has a therapeutic effect in the treatment of dry macular degeneration and that controlled studies make sense.