TY - JOUR
T1 - IMPACT of COVID-19 PANDEMIC LOCKDOWNS on VISUAL ACUITY of PATIENTS with NEOVASCULAR AMD
T2 - A Large Cohort
AU - Shor, Reut
AU - Segal, Ori
AU - Mimouni, Michael
AU - Greenbaum, Eran
AU - Zur, Dinah
AU - Trivizki, Omer
AU - Schwartz, Shulamit
AU - Loewenstein, Anat
AU - Goldstein, Michaella
AU - Rabina, Gilad
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Lippincott Williams and Wilkins. All rights reserved.
PY - 2022/8/1
Y1 - 2022/8/1
N2 - Purpose:Evaluating the impact of delayed care, secondary to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic lockdowns, on visual acuity in previously treated neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) patients.Methods:This was a multicenter, retrospective, study of patients with nAMD previously treated with anti-VEGF injections who were followed up during 2019 (pre-COVID-19) and compared with patients with nAMD during 2020 (COVID-19).Results:A total of 1,192 patients with nAMD with a mean age of 81.5 years met the inclusion criteria. Of these, 850 patients were assessed in 2019 (pre-COVID-19) and 630 patients were assessed in 2020 (COVID-19). Three hundred eight patients were assessed through both 2019 and 2020 and thus were included in both cohorts. There was no significant difference between 2020 and 2019 in baseline and change in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA; P = 0.342 and P = 0.911, respectively). The mean number of anti-VEGF injections was significantly lower (5.55 vs. 6.13, P < 0.01), with constant lower ratio of injections per patient in the COVID-19 period. Baseline BCVA (0.859, P < 0.01), number of injections (-0.006, P = 0.01), and age (0.003, P < 0.01) were predictors of final BCVA.Conclusion:In patients with nAMD, delayed care secondary to COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns has no statistically significant impact on BCVA. Best-corrected visual acuity, older age, and lower number of yearly anti-VEGF injections are predictors for decrease BCVA.
AB - Purpose:Evaluating the impact of delayed care, secondary to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic lockdowns, on visual acuity in previously treated neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) patients.Methods:This was a multicenter, retrospective, study of patients with nAMD previously treated with anti-VEGF injections who were followed up during 2019 (pre-COVID-19) and compared with patients with nAMD during 2020 (COVID-19).Results:A total of 1,192 patients with nAMD with a mean age of 81.5 years met the inclusion criteria. Of these, 850 patients were assessed in 2019 (pre-COVID-19) and 630 patients were assessed in 2020 (COVID-19). Three hundred eight patients were assessed through both 2019 and 2020 and thus were included in both cohorts. There was no significant difference between 2020 and 2019 in baseline and change in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA; P = 0.342 and P = 0.911, respectively). The mean number of anti-VEGF injections was significantly lower (5.55 vs. 6.13, P < 0.01), with constant lower ratio of injections per patient in the COVID-19 period. Baseline BCVA (0.859, P < 0.01), number of injections (-0.006, P = 0.01), and age (0.003, P < 0.01) were predictors of final BCVA.Conclusion:In patients with nAMD, delayed care secondary to COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns has no statistically significant impact on BCVA. Best-corrected visual acuity, older age, and lower number of yearly anti-VEGF injections are predictors for decrease BCVA.
KW - AMD
KW - COVID-19
KW - anti-VEGF
KW - lockdown
KW - neovascular AMD
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85135282056&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1097/IAE.0000000000003497
DO - 10.1097/IAE.0000000000003497
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C2 - 35502974
AN - SCOPUS:85135282056
SN - 0275-004X
VL - 42
SP - 1529
EP - 1535
JO - Retina
JF - Retina
IS - 8
ER -
