Short-term safety and efficacy of intravitreal 0.7-mg dexamethasone implants for pseudophakic cystoid macular edema

Aims: To determine the feasibility, safety, and clinical efficacy of intravitreal 0.7-mg dexamethasone implants (Ozurdex) in patients with refractory cystoid macular edema after uncomplicated cataract surgery. Methods and materials: In this study, 11 eyes of 11 patients affected by pseudophakic cystoid macular edema refractory to medical treatment were treated with a single intravitreal injection of a dexamethasone implant. Follow-up visits involved Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study visual acuity testing, optical coherence tomography imaging, and ophthalmoscopic examination. Results: The follow-up period was six months. The mean duration of cystoid macular edema before treatment with Ozurdex was 7.7 months (range, 6-10 months). The baseline mean best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was 0.58 +/- 0.17 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution (logMAR). The mean BCVA improved to 0.37 +/- 0.16 logMAR (p = 0.008) and 0.20 +/- 0.13 logMAR (p = 0.001) after 1 and 3 months, respectively. At the last follow-up visit (6-month follow-up), the mean BCVA was 0.21 +/- 0.15 logMAR (p = 0.002). The mean foveal thickness at baseline (513.8 mu m, range, 319-720 mu m) decreased significantly (308.0 mu m; range, 263-423 mu m) by the end of the follow-up period (p < 0.0001). Final foveal thickness was significantly correlated with baseline BCVA (r = 0.57, p = 0.002). No ocular or systemic adverse events were observed. Conclusions: Short-term results suggest that the intravitreal dexamethasone implant is safe and well tolerated in patients with pseudophakic cystoid macular edema. Treated eyes had revealed a significant improvement in BCVA and decrease in macular thickness by optical coherence tomography.