Purpose To evaluate the morphological and functional changes following intravitreal Ozurdex (dexamethasone implant) injections in patients with macular oedema (MO) secondary to retinal vascular diseases. Design This is a single centre, exploratory phase III, prospective, open-label clinical study. Methods Thirty patients with MO secondary to retinal vascular disorders underwent assessments for best corrected visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, microperimetry, chromatic sensitivity, macular thickness, and morphology using spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) and fluorescein angiography at baseline. They were treated with intravitreal Ozurdex at baseline and monitored monthly with visual acuity and SD-OCT assessments up to 36 weeks. Re-treatment was permitted from 16 to 24 weeks according to pre-defined criteria. All visual function tests were repeated at 24 weeks. Results The mean change in central subfield thickness (CST) from baseline was significant at all visits up to 32 weeks. The lowest mean CST was recorded at 8 weeks and the highest mean ETDRS score was achieved at 12 weeks. All visual functions except contrast sensitivity improved significantly by 24 weeks. The study showed that the ideal re-treatment time point based on functional and structural outcomes and known side-effects of Ozurdex treatment is at 20 weeks. Conclusion Ozurdex therapy has a rapid and dramatic effect on the macula for about 8 weeks followed by a sustained modest effect up to week 32. The optimal re-treatment time point is at 20 weeks.

Background: To assess the 3-year visual outcome and injection frequency for patients on ranibizumab for neovascular age-related macular degeneration (NV-AMD). Methods: Retrospective case-note review of 174 treatment-naïve eyes of 156 patients with NV-AMD with 3-year follow-up was done at specific time points closest to 12, 24 and 36 months. Results: The median baseline visual acuity (VA) of 50 Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study letters (mean 48.2 ± 16.9) improved significantly to 55 (mean 51.2 ± 18.7) by the end of 12 months (p = 0.04). At 24 months, the median letter score remained unchanged at 55 (mean 50.4 ± 20.8; p = 0.14 as compared to baseline) and at 36 months, the median VA was 54 letters (mean 49.1 ± 21.7; p = 0.34 compared to baseline). The mean numbers of injections were 4.8 ± 2.2 at 1 year, 7.8 ± 4.2 at 2 years (2.9 in the second year) and 10.2 ± 6.2 at the end of the third year (2.4 in the third year). Conclusion: Our study demonstrates the efficacy of a variable dosing regimen of ranibizumab for the treatment of NV-AMD. The mean gain in VA is inversely proportional to the baseline VA and did not correlate with the number of injections.

Introduction: Ophthalmology services have been significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Frequency of intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (Anti-VEGF) injections are important in visual outcomes. Methods: We conducted an audit on intravitreal services in an NHS district general hospital in the UK including all new patients with diabetic macular oedema (CI-DMO) and wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD) who were initiated on intravitreal injection of Aflibercept (EYLEA) between 1st January to 15th July 2020, and had subsequent injections until October 2020. Data on injection dates and visual acuity was extracted, and the total number of all intravitreal injections for all indications between January to September 2020 and the same period in 2019. Delay to treatment was defined as more than 14 days, according to the fixed dosing schedule. Results: We found 31% (n=17) of patients initiated on treatment for wet AMD and 44% (N=11) for CI-DMO had delayed injections.  There was no correlation between total duration of delay and change in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA). Similarly, we found no association between duration of delay and change in BCVA. The number of intravitreal injections declined during the COVID-19 pandemic by 17.8% compared to 2019. Conclusion: Majority of patients initiated on anti-VEGF injections just before the pandemic or during the pandemic received injections on time. Where there were significant delays to treatment, there was no detected loss in vision over the short term. However, the long-term impact and impact of overall reduction in intravitreal injections are unknown.

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