Vision Loss after Intravitreal Injection of Autologous Stem Cells for AMD

Adipose tissue-derived stem cellshave been increasingly used by stem-cell clinics in the United States and elsewhere to treat a variety of disorders. We evaluated three patients in whom severe bilateral visual loss developed after they received intravitreal injections of autologous adipose tissue-derived stem cellsat one such clinic in the United States. In these three patients, the last documented visual acuity on the Snellen eye chart before the injection ranged from 20/30 to 20/200. The patients' severe visual loss after the injection was associated with ocular hypertension, hemorrhagic retinopathy, vitreous hemorrhage, combined traction and rhegmatogenous retinal detachment, or lens dislocation. After 1 year, the patients' visual acuity ranged from 20/200 to no light perception.