Impact of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on diabetic macular edema and prognostic factors

Purpose. - To assess functional and anatomical consequences of the delay in intravitreal injections for diabetic macular edema (DME) patients during the corona virus pandemic lockdown inMorocco as well as to evaluate factors associated with disease progression. Patients and methods. - This cross-sectional study included DME patients who did not completetheir scheduled intravitreal bevacizumab injections during the Lockdown period (March 20,2020 to May 20, 2020). Data recorded included age, duration of diabetes, number of previousintravitreal injections, best-corrected visual acuity, and central macular thickness before andafter the lockdown. Results. - One hundred and fifty four eyes of 104 patients were analyzed. 57.8% were male. The mean age was 59.4 +/- 9.04 years. The mean duration of delay of intravitreal injectionswas 57.3 +/- 6.7 days. The mean number of intravitreal bevacizumab injections received beforethe lockdown was 2.29 +/- 2.1. Worsening of visual acuity was noted in 44.8% of patients andwas associated with a lower number of intravitreal injections performed prior to the lockdown( P = 0.001) and with glycemic imbalance (P = 0.04). An increase in central macular thickness wasnoted in 26.6% of patients and was associated with a lower number of intravitreal injections( P = 0.038). Conclusion. - The delay in intravitreal injections during the lockdown had negative effects onvisual acuity and central macular thickness in eyes with DME. Prolonged delay in intravitrealantiVEGF injections in diabetic patients should be avoided. (c) 2021 Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.