The Dexamethasone Intravitreal Implant for Noninfectious Uveitis: Practice Patterns Among Uveitis Specialists

To describe the practice patterns and perceptions of uveitis specialists regarding the use of the intravitreal dexamethasone (DEX) implant for the treatment of noninfectious uveitis.

We invited uveitis specialists to participate in an anonymous online survey.

Among the 45 respondents, 76.5% identified uveitic macular edema as the most common clinical finding for which they use the DEX implant. The most common contraindications to DEX implantation were aphakia and glaucoma requiring >2 medications. Nearly two-thirds (64.3%) felt that the advent of the DEX implant did not change the frequency with which they used the fluocinolone acetonide (FA) implant, and about one-third (32.3%) preferred to use at least one DEX implant, before committing a patient to an FA implant.

Uveitis physicians use the DEX implant for a wide range of clinical findings and uveitic diagnoses. There was no clear consensus on preferences regarding the use of DEX versus FA implants.