Purpose
To determine whether treatment with latanoprost eye drops is able to further reduce intraocular pressure (IOP) in normal-tension
glaucoma (NTG) patients whose IOP has been well controlled with unoprostone.
Patients and Methods
A total of 34 eyes (34 individuals) with NTG that had been treated with 0.12% unoprostone eye drops twice daily for ≥3 months
were switched to treatment once daily with eye drops containing 0.005% latanoprost. IOP was measured before and 1, 2, and
3 months after the switch to latanoprost.
Results
The mean IOP of all eyes was decreased significantly by 1.8, 2.9, and 2.3 mmHg at 1, 2, and 3 months after the switch from
unoprostone to latanoprost treatment. The IOP of patients with an initial IOP of ≤12 or >12 mmHg was reduced by 11.0 or 19.9%,
respectively, after 3 months on latanoprost. The IOP of 30 (88.2%) of the 34 eyes was further reduced by the switch from unoprostone
to latanoprost.
Conclusions
Latanoprost reduced the IOP of NTG patients who had already been treated with unoprostone, even though both drugs are prostaglandin-related.
Switching to latanoprost might thus achieve a maximal decrease in IOP and thereby better prevent damage to the optic nerve
and loss of visual field in NTG patients. Jpn J Ophthalmol 2006;50:334–337 © Japanese Ophthalmological Society 2006
Key words intraocular pressure - latanoprost - normal-tension glaucoma - prostaglandin F2α
- unoprostone