Purpose: To assess the long-term visual and anatomical outcomes after intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy for inflammatory choroidal neovascular membrane (CNVM).
Methods: Retrospective case series of 15 consecutive cases of newly diagnosed inflammatory CNVM who were treated with intravitreal bevacizumab or ranibizumab injections.
Results: The study included 8 women and 7 men with mean age at presentation with CNVM of 40.53 ± 17.46 years (range, 11-70 years), and mean follow-up duration after anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy was 20.53 ± 14.53 months (range, 6-48 months). All eyes had classic CNVM confirmed by fluorescein angiography, most commonly located in the peripapillary area (8 eyes, 53.3%), followed by juxtafoveal (4 eyes, 26.7%), and subfoveal location (3 eyes, 20%). All CNVMs showed complete resolution with mean 2.6 ± 1.2 injections per eye. Preinjection mean best-corrected visual acuity of logarithm of minimum angle of resolution 0.79 ± 0.76 (approximate Snellen equivalent 20/123) and mean central macular thickness of 435.9 ± 190.2 μm improved significantly to mean best-corrected visual acuity of logarithm of minimum angle of resolution 0.46 ± 0.43 (approximate Snellen equivalent 20/58) and mean central macular thickness of 262.13 ± 108.70 μm (P value 0.02 and <0.0001, respectively) at the final visit. Recurrence was seen in 26.7% eyes (4/15), all of which regressed with single injection. Only complication noted was subretinal fibrosis in one eye (6.7%).
Conclusion: For inflammatory CNVM, in addition to immunosuppression in cases with active inflammation, anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy seems as a very effective treatment modality resulting in significant visual improvement and foveal flattening. Incidence of major complications is rare, and the recurrence rate seems low.