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ORIGINAL ARTICLE |
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Year : 1983 | Volume
: 31
| Issue : 4 | Page : 389-390 |
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Glycerine eye drops in keratopathy
Subhash Goswamy
Narinder mohan hospital, Mohan Nagar Ghaziabad, India
Correspondence Address: Subhash Goswamy C/o, Mr. S.D. Bhalla 5151, W.E.A, Karol Bagh New Delhi-110005 India
Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None | Check |
PMID: 6677595
How to cite this article: Goswamy S. Glycerine eye drops in keratopathy. Indian J Ophthalmol 1983;31:389-90 |
Optical clarity of cornea is maintained by relative deturgescence provided epithelium anc endothelium are healthy. This optical transparency of cornea is altered in practically all inflammatory conditions of cornea resulting in corneal infiltration and oedema. If fluid collect under the epithelium, blebs form that may cause photophobia. irritation and blurring of vision. When the blebs break, foreign body sensation and intense pain may be there.
In majority of the cases, corneal oedema disappears when epithelium and specially endothelium condition improves with control of inflammatory process. However, in some cases corneal infiltration and haziness, associated with post operative uveitis or with keratitis, or bullous keratopathy, is a disturbing problem for visual recovery of patients specially after cataract surgery, more so, in diabetics and in those eyes whose corneal endothelium is more vulnerable to trivial traumatic or inflammatory insults.
Material and methods | | |
We observed 12 cases of such corneal infiltration and haze and gainfully managed them with pure autoclaved glycerine eye drops used over a period ranging from 4 weeks to 1 year. One drop of glycerine was used 3 to 4 times a day. Eight of these cases were following cataract operation, two following chemical injury of the eye, and two following Herpes simplex,keratitis with uveitis. Patients had improvement in distressing symptoms of pain and haziness, besides recovery to a variable degree in visual acuity. In these cases local and systemic anti-inflammatory and antibiotic drugs, or bandage lenses of 2 cases were withdrawn at the earliest possible. Intra-ocular tension in these cases was normal or low. Most of the patients tolerated the glycerine drops well. Some, however, complained of irritation and watering lasting for few minutes. Various agents like 0.9% methylcellulose, 30% sod. sulphacetamide, or 5% gum cellulose have been used in chronic symptomatic corneal oedema with no significant effect[1]. Harris[2] used medium and low viscosity celluose gums (carboxymethyl cellulose products) with questionable value in bullous keratopathy. But when he used a mixture of 1/3 anhydrous glycerol and two thirds 5% low viscosity cellulose gum, it cleared the vision for a short period. It was also useful in epithelial Herpes simplex cases with recurrences or when there was poor response to IDU treatment.
Thus for glycerine has mostly been used orally to lower the intraocular pressure, or in some cases as a carrier for some topical drugs. We used glycerine purely as drops with or without other supportive therapy in chronic nonregressive symptomatic corneal oedema. This reduced corneal oedema and haze allowed better healling of epithelium, endothelium and their basement membranes, or corneal lamellae, which possibly could not come back to normal due to fluid pressure in the intercellular or interlamellar spaces, even when inflammatory process was controlled. Hence at least in some cases of chronic corneal oedema, we can try to better restore the relative deturgescence and thus corneal clarity with regular use of pure glycerine drops over the adequately required of time. In our community use of soft contact lenses (or bandage lenses) is not possible without considerable chances of grave dangers to cornea.
References | | |
1. | Harris J. E., 1974, Symposium on ocular therapy P. 62 Publ. The C. V. Mosby Co., St. Louis, USA |
2. | Luxenberg M. N. and Green K., 1971, Amer J. Ophthalmol 71 :847. |
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