Diabetic macular edema: Safe and effective treatment with intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide (Taioftal)

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 16; no. 10; p. e0257695
• Main Authors: Sorrentino, Francesco Saverio, Bonifazzi, Claudio, Parmeggiani, Francesco
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: San Francisco Public Library of Science 01.10.2021; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Acuity; Adverse events; Biology and Life Sciences; Care and treatment; Complications; Complications and side effects; Diabetes; Diabetes mellitus; Diabetic retinopathy; Dosage and administration; Drug therapy; Edema; Eye (anatomy); Eye diseases; Injection; Intraocular pressure; Lasers; Median (statistics); Medicine and Health Sciences; Morphology; Ophthalmology; Physical Sciences; Preservatives; Social Sciences; Statistical analysis; Steroids; Thickness; Trends; Triamcinolone; Triamcinolone acetonide; Visual acuity; Visual perception; United States; Italy
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0257695

To suggest the safety and efficacy of preservative-free triamcinolone acetonide intravitreal injectable suspension (Taioftal) for the treatment of diabetic macular edema. A prospective clinical study involved 49 patients (49 eyes), that were treated with Taioftal and followed-up for six months. Complete ophthalmic examination, including spectral domain optical coherence tomography, was performed at baseline, and at month 1, 3, 6 after the intravitreal injection. Accurate collection and analysis of best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), central foveal thickness (CFT), intraocular pressure (IOP), and adverse events (AEs) were carried out in order to evaluate visual function and macular morphology before and after treatment Median BCVA value chosen as comparing statistics was significantly improved at every follow-up time points (gain of 6 letters at month 1, 12 at month 3 -improvement up to 24% at month 3 with stabilization until month 6) compared to baseline, as certified by Kruskal-Wallis rank sum test (P<0.05). Median CFT significantly waned at each follow-up times (decrease of about 65 [mu]m at month 1, 155 at month 3 -reduction up to 28% at month 3 keeping good outcome until month 6) compared to baseline (P<0.05). IOP elevation, with no severe increases, was the most common among spotted AEs (median of 23 mmHg at month 1, 20 at month 3). Intravitreal injection of preservative-free triamcinolone (Taioftal) is an effective, safe and inexpensive drug used to improve visual acuity and reduce central foveal thickness in eyes affected by diabetic macular edema during an average time of 6 months. Temporary, never severe, elevation of IOP is totally manageable with topical medications. No serious vision-threatening complications are related to the use of intravitreal triamcinolone injections.