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Updated: Aug 5, 2026
Regenerative Therapy by Suprachoroidal Cell Autograft in Dry Age-related Macular Degeneration: Preliminary In Vivo Report
Published on: February 12, 2018
Early retinal volume changes after switching to brolucizumab in refractory neovascular age-related macular
Takaaki Matsuki1,2, Kunihiko Akiyama1,2, Ken Watanabe1
1Department of Ophthalmology, NHO Tokyo Medical Center, Tokyo, Japan.
Background:
This retrospective observational study primarily focused on the evaluation of early anatomical changes and intraocular inflammation (IOI) following the switch to intravitreal injection of brolucizumab (IVBr) in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) who were refractory to aflibercept or ranibizumab and unable to extend injection interval beyond 10 weeks while resolving retinal fluids.
Results:
Data from 23 patients were analyzed. Switch to brolucizumab resulted in rapid decreases in central foveal retinal thickness (CRT) (247 (130) to 227 (94)) μm, P < 0.001), pigment epithelial detachment volume (0.18 (0.47) to 0.11 (0.19) mm³, P = 0.04) and central choroidal thickness (159 (118) to 168 (78) μm, P = 0.018), although decrease in central retinal volume (CRV) (9.80 (1.40) to 9.70 (1.30) mm³, P = 0.111) was not significant.Three eyes exhibited IOI, observed on post-injection day 2 after the second IVBr. Two eyes exhibited only mild anterior chamber inflammation, while one eye exhibited vasculitis obliterans. While CRT decreased, CRV increased in all three eyes.As a post-hoc analysis, CRV in eyes without IOI exhibited significant decrease (9.90 (1.45) to 9.70 (1.20) mm³, P = 0.002).
Conclusion:
Switch to brolucizumab therapy resulted in early anatomical changes. An increase in CRV despite improvement in central foveal parameters may represent a potential warning sign of brolucizumab-associated IOI and warrants further prospective validation.