Hugo Quiroz Mercado

Long-term effect of antiangiogenic therapy for retinopathy of prematurity up to 5 years of follow-up.

Purpose: To evaluate ocular function and systemic development in premature infants treated with intravitreal bevacizumab injections for retinopathy of prematurity over a period of 5 years. Methods: A prospective, interventional, noncomparative case study. The primary outcome measure was visual acuity. The secondary outcomes were structural assessment, other ocular functional measurements, and developmental state. Results: Eighteen eyes of 13 consecutive patients were divided into 3 groups: Group 1, Stage 4 unresponsive to previous conventional treatment (n = 4); Group 2, in which conventional treatment was difficult or impossible because of inadequate visualization of the retina (n = 5); and Group 3, newly diagnosed high-risk prethreshold or threshold retinopathy of prematurity (n = 9). All patients showed initial regression of neovascularization. One patient was diagnosed with recurrence of neovascularization and was treated with intravitreal bevacizumab. Visual acuity was preserved, and median vision was 20/25 (excluding 2 operated eyes). Twelve eyes developed mainly low myopia over the years, with an overall mean value of 3.2 diopters. Electroretinograph was normal in 4 eyes that had no previous detachment. One patient showed delay in growth and neurodevelopment, whereas all the others were within the normal range. Conclusion: Five years of follow-up in a small series suggest that intravitreal bevacizumab for retinopathy of prematurity results in apparently preserved ocular function and systemic development.

Intravitreal Bevacizumab for the Treatment of Chronic or Recurrent Central Serous Chorioretinopathy

Background: We report the use of intravitreal bevacizumab as an option for the treatment of chronic or recurrent central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC). Methods: Eight eyes with chronic or recurrent CSC received intravitreal bevacizumab (1.25 mg/0.05 cc) and underwent best corrected visual acuity (VA), optical coherent tomography (OCT), fluorescein angiography (FA) and indocyanine green angiography (ICG) before, and one, three and six months after treatment. Results: All patients showed improvement in visual acuity, fluorescein angiographic leakage, choroidal hyperpermeability and reduced or resolved neurosensory detachment following treatment. Two patients require a second dose of intravitreal bevacizumab. Conclusions: Intravitreal injection of bevacizumab was associated with visual improvement and reduced neurosensory detachment without adverse events in patients with chronic or recurrent CSC. Although these results are promising, further investigations would be helpful to understand this therapy for patients with CSC.