ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: To analyze a series of eyes with brolucizumab-associated intraocular inflammation (IOI) without retinal vasculitis reported to the American Society of Retina Specialists (ASRS). METHODS: The ASRS Research and Safety in Therapeutics (ReST) Committee analyzed clinical characteristics from submitted reports of IOI after brolucizumab. Eyes with retinal vasculitis or that received intraocular antibiotics were excluded. RESULTS: Forty-nine eyes of 45 patients were collected. Mean visual acuity (VA) at baseline was 20/49 (range 20/20 - 5/200). Patients presented with IOI a mean of 24 (range 3-63) days after most recent brolucizumab injection; 61% presented for an unscheduled visit while 39% presented at routine follow-up. Mean VA at IOI presentation was 20/67 (range 20/20 - 3/200). Most common symptoms were floaters (78%) and blurry vision (76%). Pain (20%) and redness (16%) were less common; 3 (6%) eyes were asymptomatic. IOI was anterior only in 18%, posterior only in 31%, and both anterior and posterior in 51% of eyes. Treatment included topical steroids alone in 67% eyes, while 10% eyes received no treatment. Mean VA at last follow-up was 20/56 (range 20/20 - 1/200). Three (6%) eyes lost 3 or more lines and 1 (2%) eye lost 6 or more lines. CONCLUSIONS: Brolucizumab-associated IOI without retinal vasculitis typically presented with a delayed onset of a few weeks. Often, visual acuity decline was relatively mild. Most symptoms resolved and nearly all had a return to baseline VA, but a small percentage of patients had a significant decrease in VA at last follow-up.
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: To analyze a case series of retinal vasculitis reported to the American Society of Retina Specialists (ASRS) following Food and Drug Administration approval of brolucizumab for treatment of neovascular age-related macular degeneration. METHODS: The ASRS Research and Safety in Therapeutics Committee analyzed clinical and imaging characteristics from submitted reports of retinal vasculitis after brolucizumab. RESULTS: Retinal vasculitis was reported in 26 eyes of 25 patients (22 [88%] female) after treatment with brolucizumab. Imaging studies were available for 24 of 26 eyes. Most cases (92%) were associated with intraocular inflammation, which presented at a mean of 25 days (range, 3-63 days) after the most recent brolucizumab injection. Mean visual acuity (VA) was 20/52 (range, 20/25-4/200) before the adverse event, 20/151 (range, 20/25-hand motion) at presentation of the adverse event, and 20/243 (range, 20/30-light perception) at last follow-up. Twelve eyes (46%) had a greater than 3-line decrease in VA at final follow-up, and 12 eyes (46%) had a final VA of 20/200 or worse. Analysis of retinal imaging identified vasculopathy that involved retinal arteries (91%), retinal veins (79%), and choroidal vessels (48%). Occlusive disease was apparent on imaging in 83% of eyes. Treatment approaches were varied. CONCLUSIONS: Retinal vasculitis has been identified in a series of eyes following brolucizumab. Although a few eyes in this series were asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic, some eyes had significant vision loss. A careful examination for signs of active inflammation prior to brolucizumab injection is recommended. Once vasculopathy is suspected, angiographic imaging may help define the spectrum of involvement. Optimal treatment strategies remain unknown.
