The Role of Epiretinal Membrane on Treatment of Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration with Intravitreal Bevacizumab

PURPOSE To determine the effect of epiretinal membranes (ERM) on the treatment response and the number of intravitreal bevacizumab injections (IVB) in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD). METHODS A retrospective chart review was performed on 63 eyes of 63 patients. The patients were divided into AMD group (n = 35) and AMD/ERM group (n = 28). Best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and central retinal thickness (CRT), as well as the number of injections, were evaluated. RESULTS There was a significant improvement in BCVA at 3 months for the AMD and AMD/ERM groups (P = 0.02, P = 0.03, resp.). At 6, 12, and 18 months, BCVA did not change significantly in either of the groups compared to baseline (P > 0.05 for all). At 3, 6, 12, and 24 months, the AMD group had an improvement in BCVA (logMAR) of 0.09, 0.06, 0.06, and 0.03 versus 0.08, 0.07, 0.05, and 0.03 for the AMD/ERM group (P = 0.29, P = 0.88, P = 0.74, P = 0.85, resp.). A significant decrease in CRT occurred in both groups for all time points (P < 0.001 for all). The change in CRT was not statistically different between the two groups at all time points (P > 0.05 for all). The mean number of injections over 24 months was 8.8 in the AMD group and 9.2 in the AMD/ERM group (P = 0.76). CONCLUSION During 24 months, visual and anatomical outcomes of IVB in nAMD patients were comparable with those in nAMD patients with ERM with similar injection numbers.