Difluprednate versus Prednisolone Acetate after Cataract Surgery: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Objective Topical steroids are the cornerstone in controlling the inflammation after cataract surgery. Prednisolone acetate and difluprednate are the two main products for this purpose. However, it is unclear which one should be used in terms of effectiveness and safety.Design Systematic review and...

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Main Authors: Mahmoud Tawfik KhalafAllah, Ahmed Basiony, Ahmed Salama
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMJ Publishing Group 2019-11-01
Series:BMJ Open
Online Access:https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/11/e026752.full
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author Mahmoud Tawfik KhalafAllah
Ahmed Basiony
Ahmed Salama
author_facet Mahmoud Tawfik KhalafAllah
Ahmed Basiony
Ahmed Salama
author_sort Mahmoud Tawfik KhalafAllah
collection DOAJ
description Objective Topical steroids are the cornerstone in controlling the inflammation after cataract surgery. Prednisolone acetate and difluprednate are the two main products for this purpose. However, it is unclear which one should be used in terms of effectiveness and safety.Design Systematic review and meta-analysis.Data sources Medline via PubMed, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Web of science and clinicaltrials.gov were searched through 10 January 2018, and updated on 20 July 2019, in addition to researching the references’ lists of the relevant articles.Eligibility criteria Randomised-controlled trials (RCTs) comparing difluprednate and prednisolone acetate regardless of the dosing regimen used.Data extraction and synthesis Two independent authors assessed the included RCTs regarding the risk of bias using the Cochrane tool. Relevant data were extracted, and meta-analysis was conducted using a random-effects model. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation approach was used to appraise the evidence quality.Results We included six RCTs with 883 patients: 441 received difluprednate and 442 received prednisolone acetate. The evidence quality was graded as moderate for corneal oedema and intraocular pressure and low for anterior chamber (AC) clearance. After small incision cataract surgery, difluprednate was superior in clearing AC cells at 1 week (OR=2.5, p>0.00001) and at 2 weeks (OR=2.5, p=0.04), as well as clearing the AC flare at 2 weeks (OR=6.7, p=0.04). After phacoemulsification, difluprednate was superior in terms of corneal clarity at 1 day (OR=2.6, p=0.02) and 1 week after surgery (OR=1.96, p=0.0007). No statistically significant difference was detected between both agents at 1 month in effectiveness. Also, both agents were safe, evaluated by the ocular hypertension (OR=1.23, p=0.8).Conclusion With low-to-moderate certainty, difluprednate and prednisolone acetate are safe agents for controlling the inflammation after cataract surgery. Difluprednate showed significant superiority in terms of AC cells and AC flare at 2 weeks postoperatively.
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spelling doaj-art-0de7f8d3a7254010b6c2518819945e0a2024-11-27T09:20:08ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Open2044-60552019-11-0191110.1136/bmjopen-2018-026752Difluprednate versus Prednisolone Acetate after Cataract Surgery: a Systematic Review and Meta-AnalysisMahmoud Tawfik KhalafAllah0Ahmed Basiony1Ahmed Salama2Ophthalmology Department, Menoufia University Faculty of Medicine, Shebin El-Kom, Menoufia, EgyptOphthalmology Department, Menoufia University Faculty of Medicine, Shebin El-Kom, Menoufia, EgyptOphthalmology Department, Menoufia University Faculty of Medicine, Shebin El-Kom, Menoufia, EgyptObjective Topical steroids are the cornerstone in controlling the inflammation after cataract surgery. Prednisolone acetate and difluprednate are the two main products for this purpose. However, it is unclear which one should be used in terms of effectiveness and safety.Design Systematic review and meta-analysis.Data sources Medline via PubMed, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Web of science and clinicaltrials.gov were searched through 10 January 2018, and updated on 20 July 2019, in addition to researching the references’ lists of the relevant articles.Eligibility criteria Randomised-controlled trials (RCTs) comparing difluprednate and prednisolone acetate regardless of the dosing regimen used.Data extraction and synthesis Two independent authors assessed the included RCTs regarding the risk of bias using the Cochrane tool. Relevant data were extracted, and meta-analysis was conducted using a random-effects model. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation approach was used to appraise the evidence quality.Results We included six RCTs with 883 patients: 441 received difluprednate and 442 received prednisolone acetate. The evidence quality was graded as moderate for corneal oedema and intraocular pressure and low for anterior chamber (AC) clearance. After small incision cataract surgery, difluprednate was superior in clearing AC cells at 1 week (OR=2.5, p>0.00001) and at 2 weeks (OR=2.5, p=0.04), as well as clearing the AC flare at 2 weeks (OR=6.7, p=0.04). After phacoemulsification, difluprednate was superior in terms of corneal clarity at 1 day (OR=2.6, p=0.02) and 1 week after surgery (OR=1.96, p=0.0007). No statistically significant difference was detected between both agents at 1 month in effectiveness. Also, both agents were safe, evaluated by the ocular hypertension (OR=1.23, p=0.8).Conclusion With low-to-moderate certainty, difluprednate and prednisolone acetate are safe agents for controlling the inflammation after cataract surgery. Difluprednate showed significant superiority in terms of AC cells and AC flare at 2 weeks postoperatively.https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/11/e026752.full
spellingShingle Mahmoud Tawfik KhalafAllah
Ahmed Basiony
Ahmed Salama
Difluprednate versus Prednisolone Acetate after Cataract Surgery: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
BMJ Open
title Difluprednate versus Prednisolone Acetate after Cataract Surgery: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
title_full Difluprednate versus Prednisolone Acetate after Cataract Surgery: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
title_fullStr Difluprednate versus Prednisolone Acetate after Cataract Surgery: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
title_full_unstemmed Difluprednate versus Prednisolone Acetate after Cataract Surgery: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
title_short Difluprednate versus Prednisolone Acetate after Cataract Surgery: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
title_sort difluprednate versus prednisolone acetate after cataract surgery a systematic review and meta analysis
url https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/11/e026752.full
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AT ahmedbasiony difluprednateversusprednisoloneacetateaftercataractsurgeryasystematicreviewandmetaanalysis
AT ahmedsalama difluprednateversusprednisoloneacetateaftercataractsurgeryasystematicreviewandmetaanalysis