Acute intravitreal injection complications uncommon
Intravitreal injections do not typically result in complications requiring urgent unscheduled follow-up visits within 7 days of injection, according to a poster presented at ARVO 2021
Intravitreal injections resulted in an incidence of 0.60% urgent unscheduled follow-up visits within 7 days of injection in this large retinal specialty practice. Blurred vision and symptoms of PVD were the most common causes of urgent visits.
In this retrospective cohort study, data from 73,286 injections performed at a private retinal practice were analyzed. Overall, 441 injections (0.60%) required an urgent follow-up visit within 7 days of injection, with a mean of 3.96 ± 2.14 days between the injection date and follow-up.
Of those requiring urgent follow-up, 37.2% reported blurred vision, 12.5% reported flashes or floaters or having posterior vitreous detachment, and 9.8% reported corneal abrasion. Additional reasons for follow-up included:
-Pain
-Subconjunctival hemorrhage
-Corneal dryness/foreign body sensation
-Endophthalmitis
-Vitreous hemorrhage
-Iritis or uveitis
-Miscellaneous
-Elevated intraocular pressure
-Choroidal neovascular membrane
-Retinal detachment
-Traumatic cataract
“Ophthalmologists can use these findings to help in treating their patients requiring intravitreal injections, and in evaluating those who may be having a complication,” the authors concluded.
Reference
Miller A, et al. Analysis of urgent follow up visits and complications after intravitreal injections: A retrospective cohort study. Presented at: ARVO 2021.
