The effect of intravitreal triamcinolone on foveal edema in exudative macular degeneration

PURPOSE: To evaluate the effect of a single intravitreal injection of triamcinolone (IVTA) on central macular thickness and visual acuity in eyes with minimally classic exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD). DESIGN: Retrospective, nonrandomized clinical interventional study. METHODS: Optical coherence tomography (OCT) and best-corrected logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution visual acuity were performed at baseline and one month after treatment. RESULTS: We identified 11 eyes with foveal edema and minimally classic subfoveal neovascularization treated with an IVTA. Foveal edema decreased significantly from 401 +/- 98 microm at baseline to 295 +/- 141 microm (mean +/- standard deviation; P = .004) at one month. There was, however, no significant change in visual acuity at one or three months after the intervention. CONCLUSIONS: This biological effect of IVTA does not support its clinical use, yet it does warrant further research to determine whether locally delivered corticosteroids may be synergistic with other treatments. Reduction in foveal edema is not necessarily associated with improved visual function in exudative AMD.