Effectiveness of Pegylated Interferon Alpha-2a in Post-Uveitic Macular Edema Previously Responding to Non-Pegylated Interferon

ABSTRACT

Purpose

To evaluate the efficacy of pegylated interferon (PEG-IFN) alpha-2a to treat post-uveitic relapsing macular edema (ME) after withdrawal of non-PEG IFN alpha-2a or 2b to maintain treatment efficacy.

Methods

This retrospective study investigated subjects with post-uveitic ME who received weekly subcutaneous PEG-IFN alpha-2a injections. Comparisons between baseline central macular thickness (CMT) and best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and those at all follow-up visits were made.

Results

Six patients (nine eyes) were treated and followed up for six months. CMT (mean [standard deviation]) decreased from 375[117] to 283[39] μm after one month (p < 0.001), remaining significantly lower up to the final follow-up visit at six months (275[38] μm, p = 0.008), and BCVA (0.21[0.16] logMAR at baseline) showed an improvement of 0.12[0.11] logMAR (p = 0.026) at six months. Neither recurrences nor any serious adverse events were recorded.

Conclusions

Post-uveitic ME patients were effectively and safely treated with PEG-IFN alpha-2a.

KEYWORDS:

• Efficacy
• macular edema
• PEG-IFN alpha-2a
• post-uveitic
• uveitis

Acknowledgments

Thanks to Jacqueline M. Costa for the English language editing.

Author contributions

LDS, EB, FG, and LC recruited the patients. LDS, PG, VM, CA, and LC contributed to the writing of the protocol and collected the data. RA performed the statistical analysis. LDS, PG, RA, and LC drafted the manuscript. LDS, CS, and LC interpreted the data and critically revised the manuscript. LC is the guarantor of this work and, as such, had full access to all the data in the study and takes responsibility for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis.

Disclosure statement

All authors certify that they have no affiliations with or involvement in any organization or entity with any financial interest (such as honoraria; educational grants; participation in speakers’ bureaus; membership, employment, consultancies, stock ownership, or other equity interest; and expert tes- timony or patent-licensing arrangements) or non-financial interest (such as personal or professional relationships, affiliations, knowledge, or beliefs) in the subject matter or materials discussed in this manuscript.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.