Abstract
Purpose: :
To report the overall incidence of endophthalmitis associated with office based intravitreal injections of bevacizumab and ranibizumab.
Methods: :
This is a retrospective, consecutive, multi-center case series involving four large clinical sites. Included were all patients receiving at least one injection of intravitreal bevacizumab or intravitreal ranibizumab. Follow-up after each injection was at least four weeks.
Results: :
A total of 12,585 injections of intravitreal bevacizumab (1.25mg/0.05cc) and 14,320 injections of intravitreal ranibizumab (0.5mg/0.05cc) were given during the study period. Three patients developed an infectious endophthalmitis following administration of intravitreal bevacizumab, and 3 patients following ranibizumab. Rates of endophthalmitis were 0.02% and 0.02% respectively, with an overall rate of 0.02%.
Conclusions: :
The rate of endophthalmitis associated with intravitreal bevacizumab and ranibizumab is low, with an incidence of approximately 1 in 4,500 injections.
Keywords: endophthalmitis • vascular endothelial growth factor • injection