Real-world outcomes of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy for retinal vascular vein occlusion in Tibet, China
Authors:   Department of Ophthalmology &amp; Clinical Centre of Optometry, Peking University People&#x2019;s Hospital, Eye Diseases and Optometry Institute, Beijing Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Therapy of Retinal and Choroid Diseases, College of Optometry, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing 100044, China; Department of Ophthalmology, Tibet Autonomous Region People&#x2019;s Hospital, Lhasa 850010, Tibet Autonomous Region, China, Zhu Xue-Mei , Zhuoga Sina ,   Department of Ophthalmology, Tibet Autonomous Region People&#x2019;s Hospital, Lhasa 850010, Tibet Autonomous Region, China, Dawa Xiao ,   Department of Ophthalmology, Tibet Autonomous Region People&#x2019;s Hospital, Lhasa 850010, Tibet Autonomous Region, China, Zhou Yong-Kang ,   Department of Ophthalmology, Tibet Autonomous Region People&#x2019;s Hospital, Lhasa 850010, Tibet Autonomous Region, China, Wangmu Ouzhu ,   Department of Ophthalmology, Tibet Autonomous Region People&#x2019;s Hospital, Lhasa 850010, Tibet Autonomous Region, China, Yangzong Deji ,   Department of Ophthalmology, Tibet Autonomous Region People&#x2019;s Hospital, Lhasa 850010, Tibet Autonomous Region, China, An Fang ,   Department of Ophthalmology, Tibet Autonomous Region People&#x2019;s Hospital, Lhasa 850010, Tibet Autonomous Region, China, Miao Heng ,   Department of Ophthalmology &amp; Clinical Centre of Optometry, Peking University People&#x2019;s Hospital, Eye Diseases and Optometry Institute, Beijing Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Therapy of Retinal and Choroid Diseases, College of Optometry, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing 100044, China, Zhao Ming-Wei ,   Department of Ophthalmology &amp; Clinical Centre of Optometry, Peking University People&#x2019;s Hospital, Eye Diseases and Optometry Institute, Beijing Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Therapy of Retinal and Choroid Diseases, College of Optometry, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing 100044, China
Published: October 2022

AIM: To evaluate the outcomes of intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) agents for patients with retinal vein occlusion (RVO) related-macular edema (ME) in Tibetan.
METHODS: A retrospective, observational, single-center study. The demographic and clinical data of 90 RVO Tibetan patients (93 eyes) treated with either ranibizumab or conbercept in Tibet Autonomous Region People’s Hospital from Jan 2018 to December 2019 were collected.
RESULTS: The mean patient age was 56.8±10.6y, 45 (50%) of them were female. The mean living altitude was 3867.8±567.9 m. At the last visit, the best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) significantly increased (52.2±21.8 letters) in comparison with the baseline (38.2±24.1 letters, P<0.001); while the central retinal thickness (CRT) significantly reduced (245.5±147.6 μm) in comparison with the baseline (504.1±165.2 μm, P<0.001). The 43.0% of the eyes gained ≥15 letters, 60.2% of the eyes gained ≥10 letters, and 78.5% of the eyes gained ≥5 letters. No vision loss was noted in 92.5% of the eyes, 4 eyes lost more than 10 letters during follow-up period. The mean number of injections was 2.4±1.8. No severe ocular or systemic adverse events related to either the drug or injection were noted.
CONCLUSION: Anti-VEGF therapy is effective and safe in Tibetan patients for the treatment of RVO related ME.