Intravitreal tissue plasminogen activator to treat macular edema associated with branch retinal vein occlusion.

Abstract

To evaluate the efficacy of intravitreal tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) injection for branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO). Retrospective, interventional case series. Seventeen eyes presenting with macular edema caused by BRVO were treated with an intravitreal tPA (Monteplase, 40 k IU) injection. We assessed the visual acuity (VA) and foveal thickness measured with optical coherence tomography. The mean duration of symptoms before surgery was 3.6 +/- 3.8 weeks. The mean logMAR VA significantly improved from 0.603 +/- 0.327 at baseline to 0.388 +/- 0.248 (P < .01) at one month and 0.359 +/- 0.319 (P < .05) at six months. The mean foveal thickness significantly decreased from 738 +/- 156 microm at baseline to 454 +/- 213 microm (P < .001) at one month and 253 +/- 164 microm (P < .001) six months. Intravitreal tPA injection may be an effective treatment for resolving macular edema and improving the VA in BRVO.