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Artificial intelligence (AI) has already found its way into ophthalmology, with the first approved algorithms that can be used in clinical routine. Retinal diseases in particular are proving to be an important area of application for AI, as they are the main cause of blindness and the number of patients suffering from retinal diseases is constantly increasing. At the same time, regular imaging using high-resolution modalities in a standardised and reproducible manner generates immense amounts of data that can hardly be processed by human experts. In addition, ophthalmology is constantly experiencing new developments and breakthroughs that require a re-evaluation of patient management in routine clinical practice. AI is able to analyse these volumes of data efficiently and objectively and also provide new insights into disease progression and therapeutic mechanisms by identifying relevant biomarkers. AI can make a significant contribution to screening, classification and prognosis of various retinal diseases and can ultimately be a clinical decision support system, that significantly reduces the burden on both everyday clinical practice and the healthcare system, by making more efficient use of costly and time-consuming resources., Competing Interests: Ursula Schmidt-Erfurth: Scientific Consultant: Apellis, Aviceda, Complementtherapeutix, Heidelberg Engineering, Novartis, ONL, RetInSight, Roche, Topcon Contract Research to the Medical University of Vienna: Apellis, Genentech, KodiakJulia Mai: Consultancy: Apellis, Roche, (The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commecial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).)

The approval of complement inhibitory therapeutic agents for the treatment of geographic atrophy (GA) has highlighted the need for reliable and reproducible measurement of disease progression and therapeutic efficacy. Due to its availability and imaging characteristics optical coherence tomography (OCT) is the method of choice. Using OCT analysis based on artificial intelligence (AI), the therapeutic efficacy of pegcetacoplan was demonstrated at the levels of both the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) and photoreceptors (PR). Cloud-based solutions that enable monitoring of GA are already available., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of the main causes of visual impairment and blindness in patients over 60 years in developed countries. Whilst no effective form of therapy is available for the dry form of AMD, intravitreal application of anti-VEGF substances is able to prevent the progression of neovascular AMD (nAMD) in most cases. Aside from the drugs ranibizumab, aflibercept and brolucizumab, other agents such as bevacizumab are often used off-label in order to save expense. The treatment intervals have also been refined, so as to reduce the burden on patients and health care systems. After fixed injection intervals, the pro re nata-regimen has been developed. Each month, it is decided whether the patient receives intravitreal injections based on fixed criteria. In the treat and extend-protocol, patients receive injections on each visit, but the intervals between injections vary due to the clinical outcomes. The observe-and-plan regime allows scheduling of the injection intervals in blocks, for three consecutive injections at a time. However, results of real-world studies were not able to reproduce those obtained in the pivotal studies. A high number of visits and fear of the injection procedure impose a burden on patients, that is mostly accepted due to fear of vision loss. Caregivers also complain of loss of productivity and income from having to provide regular support to patients. Health care systems worldwide are affected by increasing treatment numbers and the costs involved. The treatment of nAMD constitutes an achievement for modern medicine. However, despite the challenges, it must be evaluated and reviewed repeatedly in order to provide the best therapy for patients., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interests./Die Autorinnen/Autoren geben an, dass kein Interessenkonflikt besteht., (Thieme. All rights reserved.)

The Club of Female Professors of the Medical University Vienna (MUW) was founded in 2005 to strengthen and improve the impact of common concerns and ideas. The mission of this continuously growing club is to improve the situation of women, including colleagues, coworkers, students and patients, at the MUW. This important goal is pursued by continuous interaction with rectorate, academic senate and politicians.

The eye is at high risk to be damaged by oxidative mechanisms. One major reason is the exposure to light throughout life. Anterior segment structures are mostly exposed to UV light. Visible blue light is believed to be a significant damaging mechanism for the retina. The biochemical composition of the posterior segment structures (unsaturated fatty acids) is an important factor making the eye more susceptible than other organs. Damaging mechanisms such as xanthin oxidase mechanisms are responsible for damage occurring in ischaemic diseases. These mechanisms are well known from diseases of other organs. Ischaemic processes are no longer believed to be the primary damaging mechanisms in diabetic retinopathy. Here, advanced glycation end products (AGE's) and related products may induce oxidative reactions and the expression of growth factors. In age-related macular degeneration photodynamic processes occurring already in childhood are believed to be a major factor contributing to the pathogenesis of the disease process. In addition, the expression of growth factors and new vessel growth can be initiated via inflammatory reactions or oxidative metabolites. In this manuscript we give an overview on oxidative mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of retinal diseases. Different therapeutical and preventive approaches such as the results of the ARED-Study and possible side effects are discussed.