Colchicine in the treatment of the inflammatory phase of Graves' ophthalmopathy: a prospective and randomized trial with prednisone.

PURPOSE: To investigate if colchicine is valuable in the treatment of Graves' ophthalmopathy (GO), we compared its effect with prednisone in 22 patients during the inflammatory phase of GO.

METHODS

All patients, similar in age, sex and smoking habits, were euthyroid for at least 3 months and randomly divided into two groups, one treated with colchicine (1.5 mg/day) and the other treated with prednisone (0.75 mg/kg/day). They were monitored with ophthalmologic assessment (clinical activity score-CAS) and magnetic resonance imaging, using a signal intensity ratio (SIR) of the recti muscles in comparison to the cerebral substantia alba.

RESULTS

Amelioration of CAS was seen in 68% of the orbits in both groups. SIR also had a significant reduction after treatment: the initial median of 1.14 in G1 and 1.27 in G2, evolved, after treatment, to 1.07 in G1 and 0.69 in G2. The variation between both groups after treatment was not significant (p=0.22). None of the patients treated with colchicine had side effects; on the other hand, side effects in G2 were weight gain, edema, gastric complaints, hirsutism, weakness, depression, and alterations in blood pressure.

CONCLUSION

Colchicine had a beneficial effect on the inflammatory phase of GO without the side effects of prednisone.