Outcomes of cytomegalovirus retinitis following the use of ganciclovir implants

Purpose: To determine the results and complications from the use of gancicl ovir implants to treat patients with HIV infection and cytomegalovirus (CMV ) retinitis. Methods: The present study was a retrospective review of 87 consecutive gan ciclovir implant surgeries performed in 60 patients over a 3 year period. Results: Based on the results of the present study, ganciclovir implants ar e an efficacious therapy for CMV retinitis but are associated with signific ant postoperative complications, including retinal detachment (12.0%), vitr eous haemorrhage (7.2%) and cataract formation (6.0%). In this series, all implanted eyes responded to treatment and the mean time to progression was 252 days. Only a small number of patients developed second eye involvement (n = 9) or clinically significant CMV infection of other organ systems (n = 5). Conclusions: This small retrospective study provides additional data confir ming the effectiveness of ganciclovir implants and the complications from t heir use.