Intraocular Pressure After Anti-Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Injection in Eyes With a Mineralized Bruch's Membrane Caused by Pseudoxanthoma Elasticum.

PURPOSE

To assess acute IOP changes after anti-VEGF injections in patients with Pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE) compared to other retinal diseases.

METHODS

Twenty eyes of patients with PXE (mean age 63.4 ± 6.4 years) and 30 control eyes (mean age 64.8 ± 11.8 years) were included. IOP was measured prior and one, five, and 15 minutes after intravitreal injection of 50 µL anti-VEGF agent. The post-injection IOP curve was modeled by an exponential decay function, and the resulting exponential time constant (tau) served as the outcome variable in the multivariable models.

RESULTS

IOP raised markedly after anti-VEGF injection in both groups, without significant difference in PXE compared to controls. The median tau in the PXE group was 8.6 minutes (interquartile range [IQR] = 8.2-9.4) versus 7.6 minutes (IQR = 6.8-8.9) in the control group (P = 0.02). Seven PXE patients and one control patient reported a previous transient vision loss after anti-VEGF injection. Univariate analysis showed that the diagnosis of PXE (1.12, P = 0.006), angioid streak length (0.12, P = 0.01), prior transient vision loss (1.77, P = 0.001), peripheral artery disease (0.96, P = 0.04) and the number of previous anti-VEGF injections (0.02, P = 0.014) were significantly associated with higher tau values.

CONCLUSIONS

The time to restore to baseline IOP after anti-VEGF injection is longer in PXE patients. Given the early need for anti-VEGF treatment, frequent injections, and the possible heightened vulnerability (e.g., optic disc drusen) in PXE patients, clinical trials on pre-injection IOP-lowering measures warrant consideration.