Topical non-steroidal anti-inflammatory, low-potency steroid combo may help epiphora
A combination of topical non-steroidal anti-inflammatory and low-potency steroid drops may be beneficial in patients with epiphora with no known underlying cause, according to a study.
Data from 30 patients with epiphora were evaluated prospectively after undergoing treatment with a combination of topical low-potency drug (loteprednol etabonate 0.5%) twice daily for 10 days and topical non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (nepafenac 0.3%) once a day for 1 month. Tear meniscus area (TMA) and tear meniscus height (TMH) were measured by anterior segment-optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT) at baseline and after treatment with a mean duration of follow-up of 8.7 ± 3.2 months.
There was a significant decrease in patient-reported Munk epiphora grading score from 2.5 before treatment to 1.6 after treatment. AS-OCT also demonstrated significant decreases before and after treatment in TMH and TMA from 402 µm to 309µm and 0.797 mm2 to 0.347 mm2, respectively.
Despite significant decreases in TMH and TMA on AS-OCT, 6 patients subjectively reported their symptoms had not improved.
Reference
Ceylanoglu KS, Sen EM. The effect of topical steroids and non-steroidal anti inflammatory drugs on epiphora of unknown cause: Optical Coherence Tomography Study. Photodiagnosis Photodyn Ther. 2022;103234. doi: 10.1016/j.pdpdt.2022.103234. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36470407.