Patients taking Avastin, also known as bevacizumab, have suffered a series of adverse side effects and complications after undergoing eye injections.

The safety of using Avastin to treat eye conditions has been called into question after these numerous side effects and complications, such as air bubbles in the eyes, have been reported. Allegedly, patients say that they can see silicone floaters after Avastin injections, which look like Avastin bubbles inside the eye.

Avastin bubbles are not caused by the drug itself but by the way the drug is delivered. Before an Avastin silicone eye injection is injected into a patient’s eye, the drug itself is placed into a syringe that is lubricated with silicone oil. It is this silicone oil that is the alleged cause of these adverse effects, as the oil can make its way into a patient’s eye and leave silicone floaters or air bubbles.

The number of problems patients have suffered due to Avastin bubbles include, but are not limited to: increased intraocular pressure; inflammation; infection, also known as endophthalmitis; retinal tearing; retinal detachment; cataract formation; glaucoma; hypotony; corneal damage; vision loss/blindness; and other related side effects.

Some eye related conditions and diseases that are currently being treated with Avastin include: macular degeneration, retinal vein occlusion, diabetic macular edema, and diabetic retinopathy.

These are off-label uses of the drug, however, and have not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. While physicians are permitted to prescribe patients off-label drugs, pharmaceutical companies are not allowed to promote the uses of this drug for these purposes.

Avastin Bubbles from Avastin Eye Injections

Avastin, to be used for treatment of eye related conditions, must be placed into syringes by compounding pharmacies. Once filled, the Avastin filled syringes are then sent off to ophthalmologists for patient treatment.

These syringes may not be designed and manufactured for eye injections. They may also be lubricated with silicone oil. The silicone oil is inclined to spread down from the surface of the needle, barrel, and plunger that comprise the Avastin filled syringe, to mix in with the liquid Avastin drug.

In addition, the longer that a syringe sits in storage waiting to be used, the greater the chance that the lubricant and drug will mix. The chance of the two mixing is even higher if the syringe is frozen before use. Thus, Avastin air bubbles may form in a patient’s eye as the silicone oil mixes with Avastin.

Do YOU have a legal claim? Fill out the form on this page now for a free, immediate, and confidential case evaluation. The attorneys who work with Top Class Actions will contact you if you qualify to let you know if an individual lawsuit or Avastin silicone injection class action lawsuit is best for you. [In general, Avastin lawsuits are filed individually by each plaintiff and are not class actions.] Hurry — statutes of limitations may apply.

Learn More