Topical treatment of experimental acute corneal inflammation by dexamethasone and nonsteroidal drugs.

In this study, we have correlated the relative effectiveness of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs versus corticosteroids in the topical treatment of acute corneal inflammation. The authors have studied the effect of 1 drop every 6 h of flurbiprofen 0.03%, indomethacin 1%, diclofenac 0.1% and dexamethasone 0.1% in an experimental model of corneal alkali burn. The objective parameters used to evaluate the corneal inflammatory response were Luminol-enhanced chemiluminescence, ultrasonic pachymetry and computer-assisted analysis of the area of the corneal ulceration. Indomethacin 1% showed statistically significant effects on the improvement of all the parameters tested in the study. No such effect was demonstrated for flurbiprofen 0.03% or diclofenac 0.1%. We can conclude that indomethacin 1% is an effective drug in the treatment of experimental acute corneal alkali-burn inflammation.