Intravitreal injection of low-dose triamcinolone acetonide to treat macular edema

Objective To evaluate the effect and safety of intravitreal injection of low-dose triamcinolone acetonide(TA) on cystoid macular edema.Methods Thirty-one patients(31 eyes,including 19 cases of diabetic macular edema,8 cases of macular edema caused by branch retinal vein occlusion and 4 cases of macular edema after cataract surgery) underwent intravitreal injection of 6 mg TA.At the time of 1 week,1 month,2 months,3 months after the injection,the visual acuity,intraocular pressure,thickness of the macular foveal and total volume of macula were examined.Results Three months after injection,the visual acuity of all patients was increased significantly compared with that before injection (0.620±0.334 vs 0.455±0.313,P0.05,after LogMAR conversion).Thickness of the macular foveal and total volume of the macula were decreased clearly after 3 months's follow-up[ (312±146) μm and (2.61±0.27) mm3]compared with those before injection [(484±216) μm and (3.76±0.56) mm3,P0.05,respectively].The mean intraocular pressure was increased remarkably at the follow-up time of 1 week,1 month and 2 months [(18.1±6.4)mmHg,(18.9±6.3)mmHg,(17.6±5.8)mmHg]compared with those before injection [(14.2±4.6) mmHg,P0.05 respectively].One case underwent phacoemulsification surgery due to cataract development during the follow-up period.Conclusion Intravitreal injection of low-dose triamcinolone acetonide is effective on macular edema patients within 3 months of the follow-up period and no serious complications have been found in this study.