A new study finds that intravitreal Avastin (bevacizumab) results in prompt resolution of acute central serous chorioretinopathy. Central serous chorioretinopathy (CSCR) is a disease of young and middle-aged adults that frequently manifests symptomatically in one eye, while up to 18% of cases may be bilateral. Research indicates that the...

A new study finds that combined anti-VEGF and photodynamic therapy (PDT) is effective for juxtafoveal and extrafoveal choroidal neovascularization (CNV) due to age-related macular degeneration (AMD), ocular histoplasmosis syndrome (OHS), and degenerative myopia. Laser photocoagulation is the standard therapy for CNV that occurs outside the...

Researchers describe the clinical characteristics of desensitization (tachyphylaxis) to intravitreal Avastin in patients undergoing treatment for exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD). A commonly encountered problem in drug therapy is the desensitization of the body to the drug such that it loses its effectiveness over time; a...

Increased retinal sensitivity as measured by microperimetry occured immediately following intravitreal injection of Avastin (bevacizumab) and lasted for at least 6 months in patients with macular edema secondary to retinal vein occlusion. Retinal vein occlusion is a common cause of sudden vision loss in adults. The major vein draining blood...

A new study finds that baseline activated VEGF receptor levels within the vitreous correlate with response to Avastin treatment. Despite great progress in the treatment of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) made possible with the advent of anti-VEGF drugs such as Lucentis and Avastin, there are still important hurdles that need...

Intravitreal injections have become a routine practice in ophthalmology, with more than 10,000 injections performed per month, according to a speaker at the meeting of the French Society of Ophthalmology. The procedure has been simplified and is now mostly performed in an ambulatory setting under topical anesthesia. The protocols for...

Aqueous vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) levels measured at baseline correlated to persistent leakage at 3 months, a small study showed; the researcher suggested this could help tailor future treatments. "Higher aqueous VEGF concentration at baseline was associated with an increased risk of persistent leakage at 3 months," Timothy...

Contamination of intravitreal injection needles is more common than post-injection endophthalmitis, according to a study. The study included 200 needle cultures from 178 injections and 22 controls. Patients received intravitreal injections of Avastin (bevacizumab) or Lucentis (ranibizumab) for age-related macular degeneration. Pre-injection...

A new study finds that intravitreal injection of Avastin (bevacizumab) in eyes with mCNV can improve visual acuity (VA) and macular sensitivity as measured by microperimetry for at least 6 months. However, some patients showed scotoma enlargement after treatment was initiated. Myopic choroidal neovascularization (mCNV) is one of the most...

A retrospective record review of patients undergoing same-day triple therapy consisting of photodynamic therapy, steroid injection, and Avastin (bevacizumab) reports that patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) maintained good visual acuity (VA) and central macular thickness after 13 months of follow-up. PDT with...