Abstract
Purpose: :
Ocular hypertension is a frequent complication after intra-vitreal injection of corticosteroids. This is related to the action of corticosteroids on the intraocular pressure, in some cases it can even require surgery. The purpose is to assess the benefit of a preventive treatment with brinzolamide in patients who received intra-vitreal triamcinolone.
Methods: :
A retrospective study on 90 eyes receiving intravitreal triamcinolone (alone or associated with ranibizumab) is reported. Injections were performed between 2007 and 2011 in the department of ophthalmology at Reims University Hospital. 77 eyes were treated with brinzolamide in the first three months after the triamcinolone injection. 13 were not treated. Brinzolamide was chosen as it has few systemic side effects and no potential pro-inflammatory action. In both groups, the measurement of the intraocular pressure was performed 7 days, 1,3,6 and 12 months after the injection.
Results: :
In these 2 groups, 23 cases of ocular hypertension were encountered (25.6%), 14 in the group receiving brinzolamide treatment (18.2%) and 9 in the no treatment group (69.2 %). This difference is statistically significant (p <0.005). The peak intraocular pressure was observed 3 months after the injection in both groups.
Conclusions: :
The small size of the no treatment group and the retrospective design of the study limits the general conclusions which can be drawn. Although there seems to be a favorable effect of brinzolamide in preventing ocular hypertension, a prospective study is necessary to confirm these preliminary findings.
Keywords: corticosteroids • intraocular pressure • macula/fovea