Real-world evidence of safety profile of intravitreal bevacizumab (Avastin) in an Indian scenario

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the safety profile of intravitreal bevacizumab (Avastin) as an off-label pharmacotherapeutic agent for various ocular conditions. METHODS: Retrospective analysis was carried out on 3806 injections of 1761 patients that were administered with intravitreal bevacizumab injection at a tertiary eye care center in India. The injections were administered on a pro re nata basis for various indications such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD), diabetic macular edema (DME), and retinal vein occlusion (RVO). RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 61.8 ± 11.59 years. A total of 59.2% of the patients were men and 40.8% women. The most common indications for which the injection was administered were DME (27.5%), AMD (26%), and branch RVO (12.3%). Among the ocular side effects, endophthalmitis was seen in three eyes (0.08%), retinal breaks in none of the eyes whereas 35 eyes had a rise in intraocular pressure (IOP) >21 mmHg (0.9%). Preexisting glaucoma was present in four eyes while remaining 31 eyes did not have any history of glaucoma. IOP rise was significantly more in eyes with preexisting glaucoma as compared to nonglaucomatous eyes (P = 0.04). No systemic adverse events were noted in our study population. CONCLUSION: Our study provides real-world evidence regarding the safety profile of intravitreal bevacizumab (Avastin). These data suggest that bevacizumab is a safe and economical pharmacotherapeutic agent that can be administered for a variety of ocular disorders. Analyzing the safety of bevacizumab is necessary for a developing country like India as the majority of the population cannot afford the costly ranibizumab as compared to bevacizumab for ocular healthcare.