Bevacizumab in retinal vein occlusion-results of a prospective case series

Abstract

Bevacizumab injection is able to improve CME and VA in RVO patients within the first 3 to 9 weeks. We did not observe any short-term adverse effects during our study. As the decrease in VA was anticipated by an increase in central retinal thickness, regular OCT examinations between week 3 and 6 may be helpful for judging the appropriate timing for re-injection in order to maintain patients within the initially reached range of VA until a new balance between inflow and outflow in the retinal circulation is reached.

Long-term effect of early intervention with single intravitreal injection of bevacizumab followed by panretinal and macular grid photocoagulation in central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO) with macular edema: A pilot study

“…13 In several case series, bevacizumab was reported to improve macular edema associated with CRVO, at least in the short term. [4][5][6][7] Patients experienced a dramatic improvement in the visual acuity and clinical fundus appearance, without collateral vessel formation. 9 In addition, bevacizumab appears to have activity against anterior segment neovascularization.…”

“…2 Especially, the off-label use of intravitreal injection of bevacizumab for macular edema has been studied extensively. [4][5][6][7] Bevacizumab is a full-length recombinant humanized antibody, active against VEGF, and approved for use in colorectal cancer. 12 Off-label intravitreal injection of bevacizumab was first reported as a potential therapy for macular edema secondary to CRVO in 2005.…”

“…3 Various studies have confirmed that intravitreal injection of bevacizumab (a pan VEGF blocker) improves the visual acuity in these patients by virtue of reduction in macular edema and reversal of fundus changes. [4][5][6][7] Bevacizumab treatment early after the onset of CRVO was associated with statistically significant reduction in venous dilation, tortuosity, optic disc swelling and macular edema, and a dramatic improvement in visual acuity. 8,9 However, need of repeated injections at regular intervals to maintain the visual gain has been a major drawback.…”

Twelve-month experience with Ozurdex for the treatment of macular edema associated with retinal vein occlusion

“…Of note, ranibizumab was not approved for the treatment of RVO at the beginning of this study. Therefore, based on published clinical data, 22,23 bevacizumab was used for treatment in an off-label setting after IRB approval.…”

Short term results after single dose intravitreal bevacizumab treatment for macular edema secondary to central and branch retinal vein occlusions

“…Therefore, they asserted that bevacizumab treatment should be continued until appropriate retinal circulation was achieved. [15] Based on our results, however, we would suggest that, particularly in cases with CRVO, single-dose bevacizumab monotherapy may fail to have adequate therapeutic effect.…”