Eye-Connect: Optimal Management of Diabetic Retinopathy: Leveraging the Treatment Evidence

Program Overview
New data regarding the use of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapies in patients with diabetic retinopathy (DR) and diabetic macular edema (DME) underscore the need for an evidence-based shift to proactive DR/DME treatment rather than a “watch and wait” approach. Guideline recommendations do not reflect the available treatment strategies as newer anti-VEGF therapies continue to evolve to reduce the burden of care. This curriculum provides guidance for continuity of care, treatment of DR/DME with anti-VEGF agents, and highlights the need for individualized treatment and shared decision-making in DR treatment.

 This activity is provided by Paradigm Medical Communications, LLC.

 
Presenting Faculty and Steering Committee

Rishi P. Singh, MD, FASRS—Chairperson
Staff Surgeon and President
Cleveland Clinic Martin Hospitals
Professor of Ophthalmology
Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine
Stuart, FL

 

 

Carl D. Regillo, MD, FACS
Director, Retina Service
Wills Eye Hospital
Professor of Ophthalmology
Thomas Jefferson University
Philadelphia, PA

 
 

Additional Steering Committee

David M. Brown, MD, FACS
Director, Greater Houston Retina Research Center
Retina Consultants of Houston
Houston, TX

 
 

 

Group Leaders

Nitish Mehta
Assistant Professor
NYU Langone Health
New York, NY

Puneet Braich, MD
Clinical Instructor
Clarence Center, NY

Avni Finn, MD
Assistant Professor
Vanderbilt Eye Institute
Nashville, TN

Jayanth Sridhar, MD
Assistant Professor of Clinical Ophthalmology
Bascom Palmer Eye Institute
Miami, FL

Maxwell Stern, MD
Associate Vitreoretinal Surgeon
PA Retina Specialists
Camp Hill, PA

Christina Johnson, BS
PA
NY cancer
Riverhead, NY

Sarwar Zahid, MD
Empire State Retina
Forest Hills, NY

Shil Patel, MD
Taylor Retina Center
New Bern, NC

Fadi Nasrallah, MD
Arlington, VA

Sagar Patel
Retina Consultants of Texas
Bellaire, TX

Aminta Bhatia, PA
Emory University
Evans, GA

Pradeep Prasad, MD
Associate Professor of Ophthalmology
Stein Eye Institute, UCLA
Los Angeles, CA

Sarju Patel, MD
Attending Physician
Retinal Consultants of America
Sacramento, CA

Michael Klufas, MD
Assistant Professor
Wills Eye Hospital
Philadelphia, PA 

Aja Hardisty, NP
Nurse Practitioner
Alpenglow Family Medicine
Colorado Springs, CO

Paul Doghramji, MD
Family Medicine
Collegeville, PA

Target Audience
This activity has been designed to address the educational needs of retina specialists, retina fellows, and select comprehensive ophthalmologists.

Supporter Acknowledgment
This activity is supported by an independent medical educational grant from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this activity, participants should be able to:

• Assess the effects of intravitreal anti-VEGF therapy on DR/DME, as evidenced by recent data 
• Differentiate among new and emerging strategies for more durable dosing of anti-VEGF to treat DR/DME
• Develop treatment plans for patients with DR/DME that are safe, effective, and tailored to patients’ clinical needs and personal preferences 

Physician Accreditation Statement
Paradigm Medical Communications, LLC is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

Physician Credit Designation Statement
Paradigm Medical Communications, LLC designates this other/blended activity for a maximum of 3.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Instructions for Participation
To receive a certificate of participation, participants must:

• Follow instructions to register or log in with your professional information and complete the preassessment
• View the online activity in its entirety
• Complete and submit the online postassessment and evaluation. You must answer 70% of the postassessment questions correctly to earn credit. You will have unlimited opportunities to successfully complete the postassessment

A certificate of participation will be available for download/printing immediately following your successful completion of the postassessment and evaluation.

For questions regarding CME credit, contact the Paradigm CME Department at cme@paradigmmc.com.

There are no fees for participating in this activity.

Hardware/Software Requirements
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PDF documents
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Technical Support: If you have any technical problems or playback issues, email us at contactus@paradigmmc.com.

Disclosure of Relevant Financial Relationships
In accordance with the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education’s (ACCME) Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education, Paradigm requires that all planners, faculty, and others who are in a position to control the content of this activity disclose all financial relationships with ineligible companies during the past 24 months.

All relevant relationships are identified and mitigated according to Paradigm policy prior to individuals assuming their roles, and are disclosed prior to learners’ engagement in the activity. Paradigm is committed to providing learners with high-quality accredited continuing education that promotes improvements or quality in healthcare and not a specific proprietary business interest of an ineligible company.

The content of this activity was independently reviewed to ensure that it is fair and balanced, scientifically rigorous, evidence based, and aligned with the public interest. All relevant relationships have been mitigated.

David M. Brown, MD, FACS
Consultant: Adverum Biotechnologies Inc; agtc; Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc; Annexon, Inc; Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc; Bayer Corporation; Beyeonics Surgical; Biogen; Boehringer Ingelheim International; Celltrion Inc; Chengdu Kanghong Pharmaceutical Group Co, LTD; Clearside Biomedical; Coherus BioSciences; Gemini Therapeutics; Glaukos Corporation; Horizon Therapeutics plc; IVERIC bio, Inc; Kodiak Sciences Inc; Laboratories Théa; Lineage Cell Therapeutics, Inc; Novartis AG; Optos; Platform Health; PPD Inc; Ray Therapeutics; Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc; RetinAl Medical AG; Samsung Bioepis; Senju Pharmaceutical Co; Stealth BioTherapeutics Inc; Verseon International Corporation; ZHUHAI SMILEBIOTEK CO LTD

Research Funding: Adverum Biotechnologies Inc; Alderya Thereapeutics, Inc; Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc; Alimera Sciences; Alkahest, Inc.; Amgen Inc; Annexon, Inc; Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc; Aura Pharmaceuticals Pvt Ltd; Bayer Corporation; Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH; Boston Image Reading Center; Clearside Biomedical; Cleveland Clinic Foundation; EyePoint Pharmaceuticals, Inc; Gemini Therapeutics; Genentech, Inc; Graybug Vision Inc; Gyroscope Therapeutics Limited; Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc; Irenix Medical, Inc; IVERIC bio, Inc; Johns Hopkins; Kodiak Sciences Inc; Lowery Medical Research Group; LumiThera, Inc; Nanoscope Therapeutics, Inc; NEI/NH National Eye Institute/National Health Institute; Neurotech Pharmacuticals, Inc; NGM Biopharmaceuticals, Inc; Novartis AG; Ocular Therapeutix, Inc; Ocuphire Pharma, Inc; OIRRC: Ocular Imaging Research and Reading Center; ONS: Outlook Therapeutics; Opthea; Opthotech Corp; OPTOS; Oxurion NV; Oyster Point Pharma, Inc.; Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc; REGENXBIO Inc; Roche; SamChunDang Pharm Co, Ltd; Samsung Bioepsis; Sandoz International GmbH; Santen Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.; Senju Pharmaceutical Co; Stealth BioTherapeutics Inc; UNITY Biotechnology; Xbrane Biopharma; Zeiss International
 
Carl D. Regillo, MD, FACS
Consultant: 4D Molecular Therapeutics; Adverum Biotechnologies, Inc; Annexon, Inc; Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc; Aviceda Therapeutics; Clearside Biomedical; EyePoint Pharmaceuticals, Inc; Genentech, Inc.; Graybug Vision Inc; IVERIC bio, Inc; Kodiac Sciences Inc; Lineage Cell Therapeutics, Inc; NGM Biopharmaceuticals; Novartis AG; Ocugen, Inc; Stealth BioTherapeutics Inc

Research Funding: Adverum Biotechnologies, Inc; Allergan, Inc.; Annexon Inc; Clearside Biomedical; EyePoint Pharmaceuticals, Inc; Genentech, Inc.; IVERIC bio, Inc; Kodiac Sciences Inc; NGM Biopharmaceuticals; Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc; REGENXBIO Inc
Stocks: IVERIC bio, Inc; Ocugen, Inc
 
Rishi P. Singh, MD, FASRS
Consultant: Alcon; AsclepiX Therapeutics; Bausch Health Companies Inc.; Genentech, Inc.; Gyroscope Therapeutics Limited; Novartis AG; Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc

Puneet Braich, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships to disclose

Nitish Mehta, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships to disclose

Avni Finn, MD
Consultant: Genentech, Inc
Advisory Board: Alimera Sciences (exp. 2022); Allergan (exp. 2022); EyePoint Pharmaceuticals, Inc (exp. 2022); IVERIC bio, Inc (exp. 2022)

Jayanth Sridhar, MD
Consultant: Alcon; Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc; Dutch Ophthalmic Research Center (International) B.V.; Genentech, Inc; OcuTerra Therapeutics; Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc

Maxwell Stem, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Christina Johnson, BS
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Sarwar Zahid, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Shil Patel, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Fadi Nasrallah, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Sagar Patel, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Aminta Bhatia, PA
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Pradeep Prasad, MD
Speaker: Dutch Ophthalmic Research Center (International) B.V. (expired 5/2023)

Sarju Patel, MD
Speaker: Allergan, Inc.
Advisory Board: Alimera Sciences (expired 2/2023)

Michael Klufas, MD
Consultant:  Alimera Sciences; Allergan,Inc.; Bausch & Lomb; Genentech, Inc.; REGENXBIO Inc
Speaker: Biogen; Coherus BioSciences; Genentech, Inc.; Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc
Grant Funding: Bausch & Lomb

Aja Hardisty, NP
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose

Paul Doghramji, MD
Advisor: Idorsia Pharmaceuticals Ltd
Speakers Bureau: AbbVie Inc.; Amgen Inc; Idorsia Pharmaceuticals Ltd

Paradigm Medical Communications, LLC staff members have no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Gather-Ed staff members have no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.
 
Independent peer reviewer has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Disclosure of Unlabeled Use
This educational activity may contain discussion of published and/or investigational uses of agents that are not approved by the FDA.

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