Comparison of bevacizumab and triamcinolone for treatment of macular edema secondary to branch retinal vein occlusion in a pair-matched analysis

Abstract

Background: To compare the outcome of bevacizumab or triamcinolone acetate (TA) treatment in patients with macular edema (ME) after branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO).

Methods: In a retrospective assessment, 10 bevacizumab-treated patients and 10 TA-treated with ME after BRVO were pair-matched according to initial best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and central macular thickness (CMT) as measured by Stratus optical coherence tomography (OCT). BCVA and CMT were the main endpoints.

Results: The initial BCVA was 0.2 +/- 0.13 in bevacizumab-treated patients and 0.2 +/- 0.16 in TA-treated patients, with a CMT of 497 +/- 102 microm and 517 +/- 88 microm, respectively. Following bevacizumab, the mean final BCVA increased by 2.8 +/- 4 lines, and by 0.6 +/- 3.5 lines in patients receiving TA. The mean final CMT was 238 +/- 118 microm and 195 +/- 243 microm in the respective treatment groups.

Conclusions: Both treatments decreased the CMT, but only bevacizumab induced an improvement in BCVA from baseline, which was significant 8 weeks after treatment, but no longer significant after 13 months.