Same-day triple therapy with photodynamic therapy, intravitreal dexamethasone, and bevacizumab in wet age-related macular degeneration.

PURPOSE

To report the results of same-day triple therapy with reduced fluence photodynamic therapy, intravitreal dexamethasone, and bevacizumab in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration.

METHODS

Retrospective case series. Records of patients who received same-day triple therapy with reduced fluence photodynamic therapy (25 J/cm), intravitreal dexamethasone (200 microg), and intravitreal bevacizumab (1.25 mg) were reviewed. All patients had neovascular subfoveal age-related macular degeneration with at least 1 year of follow-up. Snellen visual acuity (VA), central macular thickness on optical coherence tomography, intraocular pressure, and endophthalmitis occurrence were recorded.

RESULTS

The 31 patients were observed for a mean of 13.7 months. In all patients, mean baseline VA was 20/80 and vision at final follow-up was 20/60 (P = 0.69). In patients who received previous treatment for exudative age-related macular degeneration (n = 18), mean baseline VA was 20/100 and vision at final follow-up (mean, 13.7 months) was 20/100 (P = 0.31). In treatment-naïve patients (n = 13), mean baseline VA was 20/60 and vision at final follow-up (mean, 13.5 months) was 20/40 (P = 0.31). In all patients, mean central macular thickness was 293 mum at baseline and 245 mum at final follow-up (P = 0.053). In previously treated patients (n = 18), mean central macular thickness was 325 mum at baseline and 265 mum at final follow-up (P = 0.10). In treatment-naïve patients, mean central macular thickness was 249 mum at baseline (n = 13) and 218 mum at final follow-up (P = 0.34). Previously treated patients required more antivascular endothelial growth factor injections (mean = 3.6) than treatment-naïve patients (mean = 0.8), but the mean number of repeat triple therapy treatments was 0.3 in both groups. Changes in intraocular pressure and endophthalmitis were not observed during follow-up.

CONCLUSION

Same-day triple therapy maintained VA and decreased macular thickness in patients with and without previous antivascular endothelial growth factor therapy. Triple therapy may reduce the number of antivascular endothelial growth factor injections in some patients and stabilize vision in some patients not responding to antivascular endothelial growth factor therapy.