Purpose: To report a series of severe corneal changes following intravitreal injection of bevacizumab (Avastin) for age-related macular degeneration.
Design: Retrospective noncomparative case series.
Methods: The authors retrospectively reviewed the corneal changes that developed after the procedure in 1200 (460 patients) intravitreal injections of bevacizumab.
Results: Five significant corneal changes (1.1%) occurred in these patients within the 1st postinjection week. The severe corneal changes included corneal infiltrative keratitis (n = 2) and corneal stromal edema and descemet folds (n = 3). The findings depended on clinical examination and biomicroscopic and confocal evaluation. In terms of causality assessment, no rechallenge was possible. The appropriate treatment was applied and recovery was achieved in all patients during the follow-up period.
Conclusions: Intravitreal injection of bevacizumab may cause corneal changes. The safety and effects of bevacizumab on the cornea should be evaluated in detail.