Original Investigation

Community Optometrist–Led Monitoring of Quiescent Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration

JAMA Network Open 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2026.17984

June 15, 2026 at 11:00 AM EDT

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Is community optometrist–led monitoring of quiescent neovascular age-related macular degeneration noninferior to hospital monitoring for identifying disease activity requiring treatment?In this randomized clinical trial of 635 adults, false-negative clinical management decisions occurred in 3.8% in the community group and 7.8% in the hospital group for a difference of −3.9 percentage points, meeting the criterion for noninferiority.This study’s results support the use of community optometrist–led monitoring of quiescent neovascular age-related macular degeneration for detecting disease activity requiring treatment in integrated clinical care models.

Corresponding Author: Konstantinos Balaskas, MD, NIHR Biomedical Research Centre at Moorfields Eye Hospital, UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, 11-43 Bath St, London, EC1V 9EL, UK (konstantinos.balaskas@gmail.com).

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