Abstract

Background: Glaucoma is the second most common cause of blindness worldwide and also in India and its prevalence is increasing. Raised intraocular pressure (IOP) is most important and directly related to development of primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG). Hence, the present study carried out to compare the efficacy between latanoprost and dorzolamide for reducing IOP in POAG as monotherapy. Aims and Objectives: The objectives are as follows: (i) To compare the efficacy between topical latanoprost (0.005%) and topical dorzolamide (2%) in POAG as monotherapy, and (ii) to evaluate the adverse effects of latanoprost and dorzolamide.
Materials and Methods: The present prospective, open-labeled study was conducted in 80 patients males and females which were selected randomly with POAG diagnosis and divided into two groups. One group received latanoprost (0.005%) topical eye drops once a day and other group received dorzolamide (2%) eye drops 3 times a day. All participants were followed up for three visits at 2 weeks, 4 weeks, and 8 weeks. Before starting on treatment baseline, IOP was recorded by Perkins Hand Held Tonometer. Again during each follow-up visit, IOP was recorded to know the response of drugs. The informed consent was taken from all patients and ethical clearance was taken from institution.
Results: The mean IOP reduction for latanoprost group was 9.5 ± 3.56 and dorzolamide group was 7.89 ± 3.56. Both drugs were effective in reducing IOP. The difference in IOP reduction between latanoprost and dorzolamide was statistically significant (P = 0.02). Both drugs were well tolerated during study period, maximum side effects seen in latanoprost group (n = 9) compared to dorzolamide group (n = 7). Conclusion: The present study concludes that both latanoprost (0.005%) and dorzolamide (2%) topical eye drops effectively reduce IOP in POAG. The latanoprost is more efficacious compared to dorzolamide in reducing IOP