Dry eye is a very common problem with 20% of the population affected and is frequently associated with blepharitis (DEB), which has an over prevalence of about 40%. The aim of this study was to evaluate a topical atorvastatin formulation in a pilot study of DEB to assess the feasibility of a larger comparative trial. Ten DEB patients were enrolled in this prospective study. All patients were treated with topical atorvastatin (50µM) eight times daily for four weeks. They were allowed to continue their existing dry eye treatment. The primary outcome measure was corneal fluorescein staining. Secondary outcome measures were tear break up time (BUT), Schirmer testing, blepharitis score and bulbar conjunctival injection. An improvement in corneal fluorescein staining in the treated eye by >1 point from baseline to four weeks was seen in nine of 10 patients (p<0.01). Topical atorvastatin also significantly improved the tear break up time (p<0.01), blepharitis score (p<0.05) and bulbar conjunctival injection (p<0.05). There were no side-effects. They conclude that topical atorvastatin could be a potential therapy for DEB patients; however, larger comparative trials are needed to establish safety and efficacy.
Topical atorvastatin for dry eye and blepharitis
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