NIH – National Library of Medicine

An antidepressant best known as Prozac could offer the first treatment for macular degeneration according to new research from the University of Virginia School of Medicine.

UVA’s Bradley D. Gelfand, PhD, and collaborators have found early evidence that the drug fluoxetine (Prozac) may be effective against dry age-related macular degeneration. The drug has shown promise in lab tests and animal models. In addition, the researchers were encouraged by the results of examining two huge insurance databases encompassing more than 100 million Americans. That analysis concluded that patients taking fluoxetine (Prozac) were less likely to develop dry macular degeneration.

Based on their findings, the researchers are urging clinical trials to test the drug in patients with AMD. If successful, they believe the drug could be administered either orally or via a long-lasting implant in the eye.