Retina Health Center has presented results of a national, multi-center study of ILUVIEN involving retinal patients from four centers including Cincinnati Eye, Georgia Retina, Retina Health Center and Southern Eye. The findings of the study were presented at the 18th EURETINA Congress in Vienna, Austria by Dr. Alexander Eaton, founder and director of Retina Health Center in Southwest Florida. Euretina is the largest retinal conference in the world.
The objectives of the retrospective chart study were to determine ocular outcomes in patients receiving ILUVIEN implants for the treatment of diabetic macular edema (DME), a complication of diabetes caused by accumulation of fluid in the macula or central portion of the eye and a leading cause of vision loss in people with diabetes.
Approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for DME treatment, ILUVIEN releases and maintains a concentration of steroids inside the eye for up to three years. A tiny tube is inserted in the back of the eye where DME typically forms, and the implant slowly releases a corticosteroid over the course of 36 months.
Researchers from Retina Health Center analyzed data from 160 eyes of 130 patients who had at least one year of follow-up care following injection of the ILUVIEN implant. According to the data, most patients in the study had chronic DME.
“The results of this study have significant implications on reducing the treatment burden on patients with diabetic macular edema,” said Eaton. “For patients that receive frequent injections and/or laser treatment, the findings indicate that the ILUVIEN may be a more appealing option as it can reduce treatment frequency from once every 2-3 months to once every 22 months in the best case (patients with better than 20/40 vision) and to once every 6-7 months in the worst case (patients with less than 20/200 vision). Since no one likes injections, which involve having a needle inserted into the white of the eye, as you might imagine, this transformational medication has been very well received by our patients.”
Retina Health Center was the first site selected to offer this promising medication following its FDA approval for treatment for DME in 2014. Retina Health Center and the Macular Degeneration Research Center were established in 2002 by Dr. Alexander M. Eaton, a long-time Southwest Florida resident, who has been practicing ophthalmology in Lee and Collier counties for more than 20 years. Dr. Eaton has been the principal investigator for numerous studies to prevent and treat macular degeneration, and has invented numerous medical devices for use by patients and physicians that are used worldwide. For more information on the latest studies or to make an appointment, call 239-337-3337 in Fort Myers or 239-793-5200 in Naples.
