Study examines anti-VEGF treatment lapses in retinal vein occlusion

Article

During a presentation at ARVO, Jessica Liu explained that patients with BRVO or CRVO with any lapse in treatment of 3 months or longer are at risk for poorer outcomes.

Reviewed by Jessica Liu, and Rishi Singh, MD

Unintentional lapses in anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) treatment of patients with retinal vein occlusion (RVO) are detrimental and can result in increased retinal thickness and lost lines of vision, reported Jessica Liu, and Rishi Singh, MD, from the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, and the Cole Eye Institute.

Anti-VEGF therapy is the first-line treatment for central and branch retinal vein occlusion (CRVO and BRVO).

“The high frequency of intravitreal injections required for anti-VEGF therapy is a potential challenge for these patients to maintain appropriate care,” Liu said.

Liu and colleagues conducted a retrospective chart review study to investigate the outcomes when the frequency of injections to treat macular edema secondary to CRVO and BRVO was interrupted for 3 months or longer between January 2012 and June 2020.

The patients were divided into 2 groups based on whether or not they had experienced a lapse in treatment (lapse vs. control groups). Patients treated based on treat-and-extend or pro re nata protocols were excluded. The central subfield thickness (CST) and visual acuity (VA) were collected at baseline, the first appointment after lapse, and at the 3-, 6-, and 12-month follow-up evaluations.

Findings

The lapse and control groups included 69 patients each. The respective baseline CST and the best-corrected VA levels were similar in both groups (347.7 ± 127.8 µ and 365.6 ± 139.4 µ and 64.1 ± 20.6 Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study [ETDRS] and 58.9 ± 20.2 ETDRS).

Liu reported that the patients in the lapse group “experienced a significant increase in CST after discontinuing anti-VEGF therapy (lapse group, 398.7 ± 191.3 µ vs control group, 338.9 ± 119.9 µ, p = 0.034).” The lapses in treatment ranged from 3 to 62 weeks (mean, 8.6 weeks).

Importantly, resumption of treatment did not result in immediate beneficial changes. In this study, the mean increase in the CST did not begin to recover until 6 months after anti-VEGF therapy was restarted and persisted out to 1 year. 

The BCVA also decreased significantly by almost 2 lines with the lapse of anti-VEGF treatment (lapse group, 54.5±25.0 ETDRS vs control group, 64.7±17.5 ETDRS, p<0.001) and persisted for 6 months after treatment was resumed.

“Patients with BRVO or CRVO with any lapse in treatment of 3 months or longer are at risk for poorer outcomes,” the investigators concluded. “Although the VA normalizes upon treatment resumption, patients experience a statistically and clinically significant increase in CST that does not recover. Further analysis may focus on the impact of persistent anatomic change present 1 year after anti-VEGF resumption.”

Jessica Liu

E: jcl136@case.edu

This article is adapted from Liu’s presentation at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology 2021 virtual annual meeting. She has no financial interest in this subject matter.

Newsletter

Join ophthalmologists across Europe—sign up for exclusive updates and innovations in surgical techniques and clinical care.

Recent Videos
At the 2025 ASCRS meeting, Robert Ang, MD said small aperture IOLs can benefit all patients, especially those with complex corneas or who have undergone previous corneal refractive surgery
Viha Vig, MBChB graduate student at the University of Auckland, New Zealand, discusses her poster presentation on the relationship between mitochondiral disease, Alzheimer disease, and other types of dementia.
Alfredo Sadun, MD, PhD, chief of Ophthalmology at the Doheny Eye Institute, University of California Los Angeles, shared exciting new research with the Eye Care Network during the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) meeting on the subject of Leber hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON).
At this year's Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah, Nitish Mehta, MD, shared highlights from his research documenting real-world results of aflibercept 8 mg for patients with diabetic macular oedema.
ARVO 2025: Anat Loewenstein, MD, shares data from herself and her colleagues on meeting needs of patients with diabetic retinopathy
At the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons annual meeting, Sheng Lim, MD, FRCOphth discusses the benefit of endoscopic cyclophotocoagulation for patients with primary open angle glaucoma and cataracts in the CONCEPT study
A photo of Seville, Spain, with the Congress on Controversies in Ophthalmology logo superimposed on it. Image credit: ©francovolpato – stock.adobe.com; logo courtesy COPHy
Anat Loewenstein, MD, Professor and Director, Department of Ophthalmology, Tel Aviv Medical Center, discusses the Congress on Controversies in Ophthalmology (COPHy)
Anat Loewenstein, MD, speaks about the 22nd Annual Angiogenesis, Exudation, and Degeneration Meeting in February 2025 and shares her global forecast for AI-driven home OCT
Sarah M. Thomasy, DVM, PhD, DACVO, a veterinary ophthalmologist at UC Davis, talks about how her research at the Glaucoma 360 symposium
© 2025 MJH Life Sciences

All rights reserved.