Incidence of endophthalmitis after intravitreal injections at a tertiary care hospital

Objective: To report the incidence of endophthalmitis after the use of intravitreal injection for anti vascular endothelial growth factor therapy. Methods: This was a single-centre retrospective study conducted at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Pakistan. A total of 11 128 injections were administered to 2054 patients between January 2013 and December 2015. All procedures were performed in an operating room setting, and postinjection antibiotics were prescribed. Results: Three cases of endophthalmitis occurred during the study period, with the per-injection risk of endophthalmitis being 0.027%. Conclusion: The results highlight the benefit of administering intravitreal injections in a surgical setting in addition to enforcing quality protocols. We also recommend further investigation to scrutinize the role of antibiotics prescribed after deploying intravitreal injections so that unnecessary use of such may be curtailed.