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Abstract #18373 Published in IGR 3-3
Lack of long-term drift in timolol's effectiveness in patients with ocular hypertension
Bengtsson B; Heijl AInvestigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science 2001; 42: 2839-2842
PURPOSE: To report the changeover time in intraocular pressure (IOP) in patients treated with topical timolol or placebo. METHODS: Ninety patients with untreated ocular hypertension, defined as elevated IOP and normal visual fields, were randomly assigned to treatment and prospectively observed at three-month intervals for up to ten years in a double-masked fashion. The study endpoint was one eye showing reproducible glaucomatous field defects; patients were also withdrawn if one eye showed IOP of 35 mmHg or higher. For each treatment group and visit, the mean and median of all IOP measurements were calculated. Medians were also calculated for the timolol group, assuming a worst-case scenario in which all patients who reached the endpoint, or IOP of 35 mmHg or more, were assumed to show higher IOP than those remaining in the study. Distributions of slopes for IOP over time were compared between treatment groups. RESULTS: Means and medians of follow-up IOP over time did not differ between timolol- and placebo-treated patients. This was also true when assuming a worst-case scenario. Slopes of IOP over time did not differ statistically between treatment groups. CONCLUSIONS: In agreement with other masked and controlled studies, and in conflict with uncontrolled ones, the present study did not demonstrate long-term drift of IOP in patients with ocular hypertension treated with topical timolol.
Dr B. Bengtsson, Department of Ophthalmology, Malmö University Hospital, SE-20502 Malmö, Sweden. boel.bengtsson@oftal.mas.lu.se
Classification:
11.3.4 Betablocker (Part of: 11 Medical treatment > 11.3 Adrenergic drugs)
