Decrease in the risk of bilateral acute retinal necrosis by acyclovir therapy.
We reviewed the course of 54 patients who had unilateral acute retinal necrosis at initial examination. Thirty-one patients were treated with acyclovir, whereas 23 were not. Of the 31 patients treated with acyclovir, 27 (87.1%) had fellow eyes that remained disease-free throughout a median follow-up of 12 months. Of the 23 patients not treated with acyclovir, seven (30.4%) had fellow eyes that remained disease-free throughout a median follow-up of 11 months. Survival analysis indicated that the fellow eyes of the group of patients treated with acyclovir were more likely to remain disease-free than the fellow eyes of the group not treated with acyclovir (P = .0013). Two years after initial onset, the proportion of fellow eyes that remained disease-free was 75.3% for the group treated with acyclovir and 35.1% for the group not treated with acyclovir. These results suggest that acyclovir treatment reduces the risk of involvement of the fellow eye in patients with acute retinal necrosis.
Palay
D A
DA
Department of Ophthalmology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322.
Sternberg
P
P
Davis
J
J
Lewis
H
H
Holland
G N
GN
Mieler
W F
WF
Jabs
D A
DA
Drews
C
C
D000212:Acyclovir / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D004333:Drug Administration Routes; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015882:Retinal Necrosis Syndrome, Acute / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000517:prevention & control; D012307:Risk Factors; D016019:Survival Analysis
D000212:Acyclovir