Purpose: To evaluate the durability of fixed bimonthly dosing of intravitreal aflibercept for neovascular age-related macular degeneration.
Methods: Records of 16 patients were retrospectively reviewed. Patients received three initial 2.0 mg monthly doses of aflibercept then 8-weekly doses according to the product label. Best-corrected visual acuity (Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study [ETDRS] letters), central macular thickness, fluid on optical coherence tomography, and pigment epithelial detachment (PED) were measured.
Results: Prior to starting aflibercept, 13 patients had subretinal fluid (SRF), five had intraretinal fluid (IRF), four had PED, and baseline visual acuity (VA) was 62 approximate ETDRS letters. Following the monthly dosing, seven patients had no improvement or decreased VA, ten patients still had SRF/IRF, and PED had worsened in one patient. At Visit 4, an average of 6.8 weeks after Visit 3, VA had decreased in seven patients, SRF/IRF had increased in 12 patients, and PED had returned in all patients who initially responded. Based on the presence of fluid after the initial monthly injections, 12 patients could not be extended to fixed bimonthly dosing.
Conclusion: This study adds to the growing body of evidence on the need for flexible dosing schedules for the personalized treatment of neovascular age-related macular degeneration.
Keywords: AMD; aflibercept; age-related macular degeneration; bimonthly; case studies; regimen; retinal fluid.