Intravitreal dexamethasone implant for noninfectious uveitis in Chinese patients

To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of the dexamethasone intravitreal implant (DEX-I) in Non-Infectious Uveitis (NIU) in Chinese patients.

Ninety-one eyes of 77 patients (56 men, 21 women) receiving 130 implant injections for NIU were included. Treatment indication, uveitis diagnosis, best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), central retinal thickness (CRT), vitreous haze score, intraocular pressure, phakic status, number of injections, time to reinjection, and systemic treatments were collected at baseline, 1 week, 1 month, 3 and 6 months after treatment.

All patients were followed for at least 12 weeks and had a mean follow-up period of 5.1 months (range, 3-14 months) after the first implant. The main treatment indications were macular edema (ME), retinal vasculitis, retinal vasculitis with ME. Sixty-one eyes (67.03%) received only one injection, while 31 eyes (32.97%) received two or more. In eyes that received 2 injections, the mean time to the second injection was 3.83 months and in those that received 3 injections, the mean time to the third injection was 7.5 months. BCVA and CRT significantly improved at 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, and 6 months after treatment. When compared to baseline, the mean prednisone (or equivalent) dosage significantly decreased at 3- and 6-month follow-up evaluations after DEX implantation.14.29% of eyes developed a transient increase in intraocular pressure, and a cataract was removed from 1 phakic eye.

DEX implants, either alone or in combination with common adjunctive NIU treatments, is safe and effective in the treatment of NIU in Chinese patients.