%0 Journal Article
%T Anti-VEGF Treatment of Diabetic Macular Edema in Denmark: Incidence, Burden of Therapy, and Forecasting Analyses.
%A Subhi Y
%A Potapenko I
%A Hajari JN
%A la Cour M
%J J Pers Med
%V 13
%N 3
%D Mar 2023 18
%M 36983726
%F 3.508
%R 10.3390/jpm13030546
%X BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to analyze demographically stratified incidence rates of patients with diabetic macular edema (DME) commenced in anti-VEGF therapy, to study temporal trends, to report the proportion of patients in active therapy over time, and to develop a model to forecast the future number of patients in active treatment.
METHODS: This was a retrospective registry-based study of all patients with DME who received at least one intravitreal anti-VEGF treatment from 1 January 2007 to 30 June 2022. Population data were extracted from Statistics Denmark.
RESULTS: This study included 2220 patients with DME who were commenced in anti-VEGF therapy. Demographic analyses revealed higher incidence rates among males than females and among those aged 60-80 years. The number of patients in active treatment followed an exponential decay curve; hence, this was used to mathematically model the number of patients in active therapy. The number of patients in active treatment is expected to stay relatively stable with a minimal increase until the year 2023.
CONCLUSIONS: This study provides insight into the practical aspects of the anti-VEGF treatment of DME that allow the planning of adequate health services.