Intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide versus bevacizumab therapy for macular edema associated with branch retinal vein occlusion

Purpose To compare visual outcomes after intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide (IVTA) injection and intravitreal bevacizumab (IVB) administration for treatment of macular edema associated with branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO). Methods A retrospective comparative case series of 134 consecutive patients that were treated with either IVTA or IVB for macular edema caused by BRVO. Visual acuity at baseline and 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months, and central macular thickness measured by OCT at baseline and 1, 3, 6, and 12 months. The time to recurrence of macular edema after treatment was also analyzed. Results Visual acuity (Snellen equivalent) improved significantly from 0.87 logMAR (0.14) to 0.49 logMAR (0.33) in the IVTA group, and from 0.91 logMAR (0.13) to 0.45 logMAR (0.36) in the IVB group 12 months after injection (p<0.001). Central macular thickness decreased significantly from 491.0 μm to 255.8 μm in the IVTA group, and from 477.4 μm to 218.9 μm in the IVB group 12 months after injection (p<0.001). In between-group comparisons, neither visual acuity (p=0.892) nor macular thickness (p= 0.612) improvements were statistically significantly different. In the IVTA-all group, recurrence of macular edema occurred in 7.6% of patients at a mean of 12.6 months postoperatively, and the average number of injections was 1.08. In the IVB-all group, 26.0% of patients suffered recurrences at a mean of 5.3 months after treatment, and received a mean of 1.89 injections. Recurrence was more frequent in the IVB group compared to the IVTA group (Kaplan-Meier survival analysis log-rank test, p<0.0001). Conclusions IVTA and IVB injections were similarly effective for improving visual acuity in patients with macular edema secondary to BRVO. However, the IVTA group showed longer mean improvement duration and less disease recurrence, and required fewer injections than the IVB group.