Intravitreal injections: past trends and future projections within a UK tertiary hospital

Reena Chopra,Pearse A Keane,Gabriella C Preston,Tiarnan D L Keenan,Pádraig Mulholland,Robin D Hamilton,Praveen J Patel,Konstantinos Balaskas

doi:10.1038/s41433-021-01646-3

Abstract

AimsTo describe past trends and future projections for the number of intravitreal injections being administered at a large tertiary hospital in London, United Kingdom.MethodsRetrospective data from Moorfields Eye Hospital were collected using the electronic medical record system. Descriptive statistics were used to visualise overall trends. Time series forecasting was used to predict the number of injections that will be administered up to and including the year 2029.ResultsThe number of injections has increased nearly 11-fold from 2009 to 2019, with a total of 44,924 injections delivered in 2019. The majority of injections were given for the treatment of neovascular age-related macular degeneration. Aflibercept formed 87% of injections administered in 2019. The number of injections is predicted to continue to increase every year, with nearly 83,000 injections forecasted in the year 2029.ConclusionThe demand for intravitreal injections has increased substantially over the last decade and is predicted to further increase. Healthcare systems will need to adapt to accommodate the high demand. Other solutions may include longer-acting therapies to reduce the treatment burden.

Highlights

The availability of intravitreal therapy for the treatment of retinal disease has expanded substantially over the last decade and is the first-line treatment for neovascular macular disease [1] and fovealinvolving macular oedema
● Intravitreal drugs are the first-line of treatment for many retinal diseases
Their use has expanded over the last decade

Summary

Introduction

The availability of intravitreal therapy for the treatment of retinal disease has expanded substantially over the last decade and is the first-line treatment for neovascular macular disease [1] and fovealinvolving macular oedema. Pegaptanib was the first anti-VEGF drug to be licensed by the Food and Drug Association (FDA) for the treatment of neovascular AMD in the USA in 2004. It was subsequently approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in 2006 [2]. Aflibercept (Eylea, Regeneron, Tarrytown, New York, USA, and Bayer, Berlin, Germany) was subsequently the third anti-VEGF drug to receive licensing by the FDA in 2011 [5], and by the EMA in 2012 [6], and was approved by NICE in July 2013 [7]

Methods

Results

Conclusion