Abstract
Purpose::
: to assess the safety and efficacy of Intravitreal Bevacizumab (Avastin) Injection in the treatment of RPE tears in AMD over a short term.
Methods::
Prospective interventional noncomparative pilot case study. Five eyes of 5 consecutive patients affected by exudative AMD and a recent onset RPE tear secondary to vascularized serous PED were included. At baseline, each patient underwent an intravitreal injection of 1,25 mg (0,05 ml) of Bevacizumab. Additional injection were delivered monthly, if needed. All patients underwent complete ophthalmological examination, fluorescein angiography (FA), indocyanine green angiography (ICGA), and optical coherence tomography (OCT3) at baseline and at each control visit. Follow-up visits were set at one week, four weeks and then monthly.
Results::
3 patients were female, two males; mean age was 74.2 ± 5,46. Mean follow-up was 6.4 weeks, range 4 - 12. Mean baseline visual acuity was 20/78, range 20/30 - 20/400. At week 4, mean visual acuity was 20/83, range 20/ 40 - 20/400. Three patients received one injection, two patients received the second at week 8. Four patients showed a stabilization of the lesion at both angiographic and OCT examinations. Only one patient had a progression of the RPE tear.
Conclusions::
In this pilot series of eyes with limited follw-up, intravitreal Bevacizumab appears to be safe in eyes with a RPE tear secondary to PED. Further follw-up is necessary to confirm long term treatment benefit.
Keywords: age-related macular degeneration • clinical (human) or epidemiologic studies: treatment/prevention assessment/controlled clinical trials • retinal pigment epithelium