Patient Satisfaction of Intravitreal Bevacizumab Injection Service in a Tertiary Referral Center in Iran

Purpose: To evaluate the patient satisfaction of intravitreal bevacizumab (IVB) injection for management of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) or ocular complications of diabetes mellitus (DM) and the related services in a tertiary referral center in Iran. Methods: In this cross sectional study, the patients with neovascular AMD or ocular complications of DM who had undergone IVB injection at Torfeh Hospital (May-July 2018) were interviewed. The telephone interview was conducted using two questionnaires. At first, the Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire Short Form (PSQ-18) 5-point scale was completed for all patients. Secondly, the Macular Disease Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire (MacTSQ) or Retinopathy Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire (RetTSQ) questionnaire was completed specifically based on the indication for IVB injection. Results: At pilot phase, 60 subjects [30 patients with neovascular AMD (group 1) and 30 patients with ocular complications of DM (group 2)] were interviewed. Fifty percent and 56% of individuals of group 1 and group 2 were female, respectively. The mean age was 72±9 years in group 1 and 62±10 years in group 2. Ninety six percent and 93% of patients had insurance coverage in group 1 and 2, respectively. In terms of literacy level, 36% were illiterate in group 1. Corresponding value was 13% in group 2. The mean and standard deviation score of overall satisfaction was 3±1 in group 1 and 4±0 in group 2 based on PSQ-18 scores analysis. The MacTSQ showed the mean total score of 76.3 from the scale of 100 in group 1 and the RetTSQ demonstrated the mean total score of 75.6 from the scale of 100. Conclusion: In general, the majority of patients were satisfied with the IVB injection for management of macular disease and ocular complications of DM. The study is ongoing and the larger sample size will provide better understanding of the level of patient satisfaction in the future.