Abstract
The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of pimecrolimus oil-based eye drops in alleviating the clinical signs of keratoconjunctivitis sicca (KCS) in dogs and to compare the efficacy with that of cyclosporine A (CsA) ointment. An open-label, multicenter study enrolling 44 dogs previously untreated with CsA was conducted. Dogs were randomly assigned to a treatment group and medicated twice daily for 8 weeks. After that time the mean increase (±SEM) in the Schirmer tear test was 9.2 ± 1.6 mm/min in the pimecrolimus group and 5.8 ± 1.1 mm/min in the CsA group (P = 0.085). The improvement in clinical signs of inflammation in eyes treated with pimecrolimus was significantly greater than in eyes treated with CsA (P = 0.02). The results show that 1% pimecrolimus oily eye drops are as safe as and more effective than CsA ointment in controlling KCS in dogs.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 70-77 |
| Number of pages | 8 |
| Journal | Veterinary Journal |
| Volume | 179 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jan 2009 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This study was supported entirely by Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Basel, Switzerland. The authors do not have any financial interest in the drugs tested. The authors thank Barry Kapik, John Koester and Kim Truett for assistance with statistical analyses.
Keywords
- Cyclosporine A
- Dog
- Dry eye
- Keratoconjunctivitis sicca
- Pimecrolimus