Indications and outcome of intravitreal bevacizumab injection in a Community Eye Hospital, Nepal.

BACKGROUND

This study aimed to evaluate the indications and real-world treatment outcomes of intravitreal bevacizumab in a resource-limited community eye hospital setting.

METHODS

This retrospective study included patients who received IVB injection at Hetauda Community Eye Hospital between January 2019 and December 2022.

INCLUSION CRITERIA: [Formula: see text]1 IVB injection; retinal diagnosis confirmed clinically and by Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) where available.

EXCLUSION CRITERIA: missing baseline Visual Acuity (VA) or OCT,[Formula: see text] month follow-up. Median visual acuity (VA) and central macular thickness (CMT) changes were compared using Wilcoxon signed‑rank test.

RESULTS

A total of 418 injections were administered to 247 patients (260 eyes). After excluding those lost to follow‑up, 221 patients (234 eyes) were included in the analysis. Median baseline CMT was 366 μm and improved to 236 μm (p < 0.001). Most patients received one injection (57%) followed by two injections (30%). The median baseline VA was 0.78 log MAR and remained 0.78 log MAR overall (p = 0.108), but subgroup improvements were significant in DME, nAMD, BRVO, and central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO).

CONCLUSION

IVB resulted in significant anatomical and functional improvements in patients with retinal diseases. The findings reflect real‑world outcomes in a community‑level eye hospital, where cost barriers limit repeated injections. The limitations of this study include its retrospective design, variable follow‑up, absence of control group, and limited numbers of injections.