In this clinical trial, investigators compared the effectiveness of 2 commercially formulated antibiotic/steroid combinations—tobramycin
0.3%/dexamethasone 0.1 % (Tobradex®; Alcon, Fort Worth, Tex) and tobramycin 0.3%/loteprednol 0.5% (Zylet®; Bausch & Lomb Inc.,
Rochester, NY)—for rapidly controlling inflammation in patients with blepharo-keratoconjunctivitis. Investigators in this
randomized, parallel-group, double-masked study examined 40 eyes of 40 patients with blepharo-keratoconjunctivitis. Patients
received tobramycin 0.3%/dexamethasone 0.1 % or tobramycin 0.3%/loteprednol 0.5% twice daily in the test eye, according to
the randomization schedule. At baseline, the ocular surface was graded on a scale of 3 (extensive) to 0 (minimum) for 4 components:
blepharitis, conjunctivitis, ocular discharge, and corneal punctate epithelial keratopathy (PEK). Only those patients with
moderate to extensive inflammation (cumulative score > 6) were included in the study. At follow-up 3 to 5 d later, the ocular
surface was regraded so that treatment response could be evaluated. No statistically significant difference was noted between
groups in pretreatment scores for blepharitis (
P=.31), discharge (
P=.62), conjunctivitis (
P=1.0), and PEK (
P=.57), or for total ocular inflammation (
P=.87). Mean posttreatment scores were as follows: total ocular surface scores, 1.8 and 3.4 (
P=.002); blepharitis scores, 0.9 and 1.35 (
P=.017); discharge scores, 0.2 and 0.6 (
P=.025); and conjunctivitis scores, 0.15 and 0.6 (
P=.013) for tobramycin/dexamethasone and tobramycin/loteprednol, respectively. Corneal PEK scores were not significantly different
between treatments. Tobramycin 0.3%/dexamethasone 0.1% significantly decreased clinical signs of ocular inflammation (ie,
blepharitis, discharge, conjunctivitis) and total ocular inflammation scores when compared with tobramycin 0.3%/loteprednol
0.5% in patients with moderate to severe blepharo-keratoconjunctivitis. The 2 regimens also provided comparably rapid decreases
in corneal PEK.
Keywords blepharo-keratoconjunctivitis - conjunctivitis - dexamethasone - loteprednol - tobramycin