Abstract
Purpose :
To evaluate the long-term outcomes of patients with polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV) receiving regular intravitreal bevacizumab injections as treatment.
Methods :
A retrospective review of 21 eyes from 18 patients diagnosed with PCV was performed to assess longitudinal outcomes including best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), central foveal thickness (CFT) and number of intravitreal injections. The mean BCVA and mean CFT at 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 12 months, 18 months, and 24 months follow-up were compared to baseline using paired t-tests.
Results :
The patients had a mean age of 68.9±7.1 years, a mean follow-up time of 23.9±20.5 months, and received a mean number of 9.3±6.9 injections. The mean baseline BCVA was 1.19±0.84 in LogMAR units and the mean baseline CFT was 389.2±127.9 µm. At 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 12 months, 18 months, and 24 months follow-up the mean BCVA was 1.15±0.9, 1.02±0.76, 1.11±0.76, 1.11±0.82, 1±0.88, 0.83±0.58, and 1±0.52 LogMAR units, respectively (P=0.09, P=0.06, P=0.13, P=0.22, P=0.13, P=0.34). The mean CFT at 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 12 months, 18 months, and 24 months of follow-up were 376±94.7, 364.79±122.63, 380.1±156.95, 351.88±126.46, 357.17±88.22, and 350.25±62.32 µm, respectively (P=0.07, P=0.002, P=0.001, P=0.002, P=0.01, P=0.19). In addition, 9 eyes showed no regression of the polyps, 11 eyes showed partial regression of the polyps, and 1 eye showed total regression as ascertained by the presence of subretinal or intraretinal fluid on optical coherence tomography (OCT).
Conclusions :
At 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 12 months, 18 months, and 24 months of follow-up the mean BCVA and mean CFT showed consistent improvement. The BCVA, while not significant, was improved at all follow-up visits relative to baseline. The CFT showed significant improvement at all follow-up visits except at 24 months compared to baseline. For both BCVA and CFT, at the 24-month follow-up the least significant improvement was seen. These results support the regular use of intravitreal bevacizumab injections in the treatment of PCV. However, they may indicate that the improved outcomes of injections are only observed within a year and deterioration may ensue in the long term.
This is an abstract that was submitted for the 2017 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Baltimore, MD, May 7-11, 2017.