Topical Vitamin A vs. Cyclosporine A for Dry Eye Syndrome

American Journal of Ophthalmology

In a randomized group study, Kim et al. compared the efficacy of vitamin A (retinyl palmitate) eye drops and cyclosporine A eye drops in treating patients with dry eye disease.
A total of 150 patients with defined dry eye disease participated (50 in each treatment group). In three identical clinical trials, patients were treated either twice daily with cyclosporine A 0.05 percent, four times daily with retinyl palmitate 0.05 percent or with neither. Adjunctive treatment with preservativefree artificial tears was undertaken four times daily in all three groups. Corneal fluorescein staining results, Schirmer tear test (without anesthesia) results, tear film break-up time, dry eye symptom score and impression cytologic analysis results were obtained before treatment and at the first, second and third months of treatment.
Both vitamin A and cyclosporine A treatments led to significant improvement in blurred vision, tear film breakup time, Schirmer results and impression cytologic findings in patients with dry eye syndrome, when compared with the control group treated with preservative- free artificial tears alone