Current Practice Pattern for Dry Eye Patients in South Korea: A Multicenter Study

PURPOSE: To assess current practice patterns for dry eye patients in South Korea and to evaluate the preference according to the ages and clinic types of physicians. METHODS: Dry eye patients (n = 1,612) were enrolled in this multicenter cross-sectional, observational study. The severity level of dry eye patients was classified based on the Korean guidelines for dry eye treatment. The medical records of the enrolled dry eye patients were evaluated, and the practice styles and the preferences were analyzed according to the ages and clinic types of physicians. RESULTS: Of all patients, dry eye level 1 was most common (47.5%), followed by level 2 (33.5%), level 3 (9.1%), and level 4 (1.1%). Topical anti-inflammatory agents were used in 70.7% of patients with dry eye level 2 and in 80.6% of patients at levels 3 and 4. Topical anti-inflammatory agents were also used in 48.7% of patients with dry eye level 1. Preservative-free artificial tears were preferred at all dry eye levels. The use of topical anti-inflammatory agents did not differ with investigator ages, but older physicians preferred preserved artificial tears more than younger ones. Physicians at referral hospitals also tended to use topical anti-inflammatory agents and preservative-free artificial tears earlier, beginning at dry eye level 1, than those who worked at private eye clinics. CONCLUSIONS: Topical anti-inflammatory agents were commonly prescribed for the treatment of dry eye patients in South Korea, even from dry eye level 1. Preservative-free artificial tears were preferred at all dry eye levels. Practice styles differed somewhat depending on the ages and clinic types of physicians.

Korean Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Dry Eye: Development and Validation of Clinical Efficacy

PURPOSE: To evaluate the clinical efficacy of newly developed guidelines for the diagnosis and management of dry eye. METHODS: This retrospective, multi-center, non-randomized, observational study included a total of 1,612 patients with dry eye disease who initially visited the clinics from March 2010 to August 2010. Korean guidelines for the diagnosis and management of dry eye were newly developed from concise, expert-consensus recommendations. Severity levels at initial and final visits were determined using the guidelines in patients with 90 +/- 7 days of follow-up visits (n = 526). Groups with different clinical outcomes were compared with respect to clinical parameters, treatment modalities, and guideline compliance. Main outcome measures were ocular and visual symptoms, ocular surface disease index, global assessment by patient and physician, tear film break-up time, Schirmer-1 test score, ocular surface staining score at initial and final visits, clinical outcome after three months of treatment, and guideline compliance. RESULTS: Severity level was reduced in 47.37% of patients treated as recommended by the guidelines. Younger age (odd ratio [OR], 0.984; p = 0.044), higher severity level at initial visit, compliance to treatment recommendation (OR, 1.832; p = 0.047), and use of topical cyclosporine (OR, 1.838; p = 0.011) were significantly associated with improved clinical outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Korean guidelines for the diagnosis and management of dry eye can be used as a valid and effective tool for the treatment of dry eye disease.

The Effect of Bevacizumab versus Ranibizumab in the Treatment of Corneal Neovascularization: A Preliminary Study

PURPOSE: To compare the short term effects of bevacizumab and ranibizumab injections on the regression of corneal neovascularization (NV). METHODS: Sixteen eyes of 16 patients with corneal NV were randomly assigned for an injection with 2.5 mg of bevacizumab (group 1, n = 8) or 1 mg of ranibizumab (group 2, n = 8) through subconjunctival and intrastromal routes. The patients were prospectively followed-up for one month after the injections. Corneal NV areas, as shown on corneal slit-lamp photographs stored in JPEG format, were calculated using Image J software before the injection, one week after the injection, and one month after the injection. The corneal NV areas were compared before and after the injections. RESULTS: Seven women and nine men, with an average age of 51 years, presented with corneal NV secondary to herpetic keratitis (7 cases), graft rejection (6), chemical burn (1), pemphigoid (1), and recurrent ulcer (1). In group I, the preoperative corneal NV area (8.75 +/- 4.33%) was significantly decreased to 5.62 +/- 3.86% one week after the injection and to 6.35 +/- 3.02% one month after the injection (p = 0.012, 0.012, respectively). The corneal NV area in group 2 also exhibited a significant change, from 7.37 +/- 4.33% to 6.72 +/- 4.16% one week after the injection (p = 0.012). However, no significant change was observed one month after the injection. The mean decrease in corneal NV area one month after injection in group 1 (28.4 +/- 9.01%) was significantly higher than in group 2 (4.51 +/- 11.64%, p = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Bevacizumab injection resulted in a more effective and stable regression of corneal NV compared to the ranibizumab injection. The potency and dose of these two drugs for the regression of corneal NV require further investigation.