Intraocular Steroids Effective for Treating Chronic Inflammatory Eye Conditions.

A clinical trial funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI) has found that repeat treatment with corticosteroid injections is the most effective therapy for persistent or recurrent uveitis-related macular edema, a major cause of vision loss in people with uveitis. The corticosteroid treatment achieved greater reductions in retinal swelling and was the only therapy in the study that improved vision. The study compared three treatments for uveitis-related macular edema: an additional intraocular corticosteroid injection, an injection of the anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) drug ranibizumab, or an injection of the anti-inflammatory drug methotrexate.