Ocular Hypertensive Response to Topical Dexamethasone Ointment in Children

PURPOSE To investigate the rate and the degree of the ocular hypertensive response to dexamethasone ointment in children undergoing eyelid surgery. METHODS Dexamethasone ointment (Dexcosil) was applied three times a day for the first week and twice a day for the second to third week postoperatively to children undergoing epiblepharon surgery. Intraocular pressure (lOP) was measured on the day before surgery, postoperative day 1, 7, 14, 21, 28 and 2 weeks thereafter until the IOP reached preoperative levels. Peak IOP, IOP net increase and time to reach a peak IOP were analyzed. Dexamethasone ointment was discontinued if the IOP was 25 mmHg or more. RESULTS A total of 96 children (mean age, 6.5 +/- 2.7 years) were included. Preoperative mean IOP was 13.6 +/- 2.9 mmHg (range 7-19). After dexamethasone ointment treatment, the children showed a significant rise in IOP as compared with the preoperative values. The peak IOP was 20.6 +/- 4.9 mmHg (range 11-39) and the time to reach peak IOP was 8.5 +/- 5.9 days. The low responders (delta IOP < or = 5 mmHg) of our group comprised 35.4% (34/96) of patients, intermediate responders (delta IOP 6-15 mmHg) comprised 56.3% (54/96) of patients and high responders (delta IOP > or =16) comprised 8.3% (8/96) of patients. A net increase in IOP was significantly higher in children 5 years old or less as compared with those older than 5 years (age < or =5, 9.4 +/- 7.5 mmHg vs. age > 5, 6.3 +/- 4.4 mmHg; p = 0.015, unpaired t-test). CONCLUSIONS Ocular hypertensive response after dexamethasone ointment to the eyelids occurred frequently in children, especially those 5 years old or younger.