The impact of metabolic parameters on clinical response to VEGF inhibitors for diabetic macular edema

Aims: Evaluate the role of systemic factors on the functional and anatomic outcomes of anti-VEGF therapy for diabetic macular edema (DME).Methods: A retrospective consecutive case series of 124 patients with DME treated with anti-VEGF therapy was collected. the main outcome measures were change in best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and change central subfield macular thickness (CST) measured with spectral-domain ocular tomography coherence (SD-OCT); and their correlation with clinical findings.Results: Patients with serum hemoglobin A1c values (HbA1c) 7.0% also had a significant but less robust improvement in BCVA (20/78 to 20/62, p = 0.024). CST improved significantly in both groups, but showed a larger magnitude of improvement in the group with better DM control [-140.7 microns (p 7.0% group, mean of 5.48 and 6.0 intravitreal injections respectively (p = 0.362).Conclusion: This study suggests that glucose regulation can impact the response to anti-VEGF therapy in the management of DME. (C) 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)Cleveland Clin Fdn, Ophthalm Imaging Ctr, Cole Eye Inst, Cleveland, OH 44195 USAUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Dept Med, Div Endocrinol, São Paulo, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Dept Med, Div Endocrinol, São Paulo, BrazilCAPES: 1541-12-9Web of Scienc