Efficacy of intravitreal bevacizumab (Avastin®) therapy for early and advanced neovascular age-related macular degeneration
June 5th, 2009 Posted by: admin
Purpose: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of intravitreal bevacizumab therapy for early and advanced neovascular age-related macular degeneration (ARMD).Methods: A consecutive series of eyes with neovascular ARMD treated with monthly intravitreal injections of bevacizumab (1.25 mg/0.05 ml) as long as there was evidence of activity on fluorescein angiography (FA) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) was included and observed for 6 months. For further analysis they were assigned to either an early (untreated/newly diagnosed) or an advanced (predominantly fibrotic/pre-treated) ARMD group. We examined distance visual acuity (VA) with Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) charts and central retinal thickness with OCT, as well as lesion size and safety aspects.Results: Forty-four patients (44 eyes) were enrolled (21 early lesions, 23 advanced lesions). Mean VA changed from 0.74 logMAR at baseline to 0.68 logMAR at month 6 (P = 0.01). Improvement in VA was statistically significant only in eyes with early lesions (n = 21) from month 1 (P = 0.015) up to month 6 (P = 0.03). The changes in central retinal thickness (CRT) (P < 0.001) and total lesion size (P < 0.001) were significant in both groups (early and advanced) at all time-points during follow-up. No significant ocular or systemic adverse effects were observed.Conclusion: Intravitreal bevacizumab was tolerated well by our patients and we did not identify any apparent short-term safety concerns. We observed stabilization in VA overall, with significant improvement in the early lesion group.
