Intravitreal 0.19 mg Fluocinolone Acetonide Implant in Non-Infectious Uveitis

• Published in: Journal of clinical medicine Vol. 10; no. 17; p. 3966
• Main Authors: Hikal, Muaas, Celik, Nil, Auffarth, Gerd Uwe, Kessler, Lucy Joanne, Mayer, Christian Steffen, Khoramnia, Ramin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel MDPI AG 01.09.2021; MDPI
• Subjects: 0.19-mg fluocinolone acetonide implant; Clinical medicine; Diabetes; Edema; Inflammation; non-infectious uveitis; Patients; Performance evaluation; Steroids; Transplants & implants; uveitic macular edema; United States > US
• ISSN: 2077-0383; 2077-0383
• DOI: 10.3390/jcm10173966

The efficacy of the 0.19-mg fluocinolone acetonide (FAc) intravitreal implant (ILUVIEN) in the treatment of non-infectious uveitic macular edema (UME) was assessed on twenty-six patients (34 eyes) with non-infectious UME between 2013 and 2020, in a mean follow-up of 18 ± 19.3 (mean ± SD) months. Macular edema was resolved in 24 (70.6%) cases. Five of these eyes had a relapse after 23.2 ± 14 months. Three FAc reinjections were performed and a drying of the macula was observed. After FAc implantation, 24 eyes (70.6%) were completely dry; central retinal thickness (CRT) decreased in 6 eyes (17.6%), but residual intraretinal fluid was still evident. In 20 eyes (58.5%), visual acuity (VA) improved (from +1 to +5 lines) and remained stable in 9 eyes (26.5%). Thirty eyes (88.2%) were pseudophakic at baseline and four were phakic. Three of these eyes had a cataract prior to therapy and the other developed a cataract 2.5 years after the FAc implant was administered. There was an overall increase in intraocular pressure (IOP; +4.4 ± 3.7 mmHg) and eye drops were required in three eyes. The FAc implant led to long-term improvements in mean CRT and VA, and that the side-effect profile was manageable in a clinical setting in patients with non-infectious UME.