0.1% dexamathasone and 1% rimexolone. A comparative study in the postoperative treatment after cataract extraction

To compare the efficiency and secondary effects of using 1% rimexolone or 0.1% dexamethasone as postoperative treatment for cataract surgery. A prospective study performed on a cohort of 37 patients undergoing cataract surgery by phacoemulsification with no intraoperative complications at the Hospital Clínico San Carlos, Madrid. After surgery, 19 of the patients were randomly assigned to receive topical 0.1% dexamethasone (DEX group) as inflammatory treatment and the remaining 18 subjects were treated with 1% rimexolone ( RIMEX group) following the same regime. Twenty four hours and one month after surgery, visual acuity, conjunctival hyperaemia, anterior chamber cells, anterior chamber flare, intraocular pressure, corneal thickness and macular edema were determined in each patient. The repeated measures test performed on 24 hours and 1 month data revealed a significant difference between the two treatments in terms of Tyndall (p = 0.001) and flare (p= 0.034) values; these variables being lower in the dexamethasone group. No differences were observed in the remaining variables examined. Rimexolone is as efficient and safe as dexamethasone for the treatment of patients undergoing cataract extraction.