[French practice patterns in the management of diabetic macular edema].

Purpose: To assess French practice patterns in the treatment of diabetic macular edema (DME).
Methods: A 31-item survey investigating practice patterns in the diagnosis and management of DME was e-mailed in March 2015 to retina specialist members of the French-speaking Retina Specialist Society. During this time frame, only ranibizumab was reimbursed for this indication. For each question concerning the choice of treatments, respondents were asked to assume that all treatments having market approval were also reimbursed. Answers were analyzed anonymously by Evalandgo software.
Results: Ninety-five specialists answered the survey. Two thirds of them initiated an intravitreal treatment for DME for a loss of vision greater than 0.5 (Monoyer scale). The three determining factors for treatment choice were potential VA improvement, expected retinal anatomic improvement, and patient availability for monthly follow-up. For central DME in phakic or pseudophakic eyes, the first choice of intravitreal (IVT) treatment was ranibizumab, even assuming that all drugs approved by French authorities (HAS) were reimbursed by the health care system. Eighty-five percent of retinal specialists propose bilateral intravitreal injections the same day for the same patient.
Conclusion: Most of the specialists initiate DME treatment for a VA>0.5 in France. Eighty-five percent of them perform bilateral intravitreal injections on the same day in the case of bilateral DME.
(Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)