Oral Pilocarpina for Dry Eye in Sjogren's Syndrome

Abstract

Abstract: : Purpose: To investigate the safety and efficacy of oral pilocarpine for the treatment of dry eye signs and symptoms associated with Sjogren's syndrome (SS). Methods: Thirty patients with signs and symptoms of dry eye associated with SS were evaluated with Schirmer test, rose of Bengal and a dry eye questionnaire before and after treatment with an 8-week course of oral pilocarpine 5 mg three times daily. Results: In a global evaluation a statistical significant number of patients (28/30) 93% showed improvement (p< or = 0.001) Only 3 (10%) patients experienced diaphoresis, which was described as "mild" and occurred at a median of 8 days (range 2-14 days) after starting the medication and lasted for a median of 29 days (2-56 days). There were no other adverse events and no patient needed to discontinue the medication due to intolerance. Conclusions: The signs and symptoms of dry eye associated with Sjogren's syndrome improved significantly after treatment with oral pilocarpine.

Keywords: cornea: tears/tear film/dry eye • drug toxicity/drug effects • autoimmune disease