Vision-Related Quality of Life Outcomes in the BEVORDEX Study: A Clinical Trial Comparing Ozurdex Sustained Release Dexamethasone Intravitreal Implant and Bevacizumab Treatment for Diabetic Macular Edema

Abstract

PURPOSE: To determine the patient-centered effectiveness of treatment with the slow-release dexamethasone intravitreal implant (DEX implant) and intravitreal bevacizumab using the Impact of Vision Impairment Questionnaire (IVI), a vision-related quality of life (VRQoL) measure, in patients with visual impairment secondary to center-involving diabetic macular edema (DME). METHODS: Patients with DME were enrolled in a phase 2, prospective, multicenter, randomized, single-masked clinical trial and received either DEX implant 4 monthly or bevacizumab monthly, both pro re nata. Vision-related quality of life was measured at baseline and 24 months, using the IVI's three component scales, namely reading, mobility, and emotional well-being. Rasch analysis was used to generate interval-level estimates of VRQoL, which were then analyzed using t-tests to assess changes over time. RESULTS: Forty-eight patients completed the main study; 43 (90%) answered the IVI at the baseline and 24-month (final efficacy) visits. Vision-related quality of life improved significantly, with average increases of 1.44, 0.99, and 1.49 logits, for the reading, mobility, and emotional well-being scales respectively, from baseline to 24 months, (P < 0.001). There was no significant between-group difference in improvement in VRQoL in the DEX implant only compared with the bevacizumab-only group, in any of the three scales listed above (with 1.41, 1.08, and 2.11 logits improvement, in reading, mobility, and emotional well-being, respectively, for DEX implant group, compared with 1.48, 1.06, and 2.11 for bevacizumab; P values > 0.1.). CONCLUSIONS: We found that both DEX implant and bevacizumab treatment result in significant and similar improvements in VRQoL in patients with DME over a 24-month period. (Clinicaltrials.gov identifier NCT01298076).