title: Effect of betaxolol on the retinal circulation in eyes with ocular hypertension: a pilot study.
abstract: This study investigated the effect of betaxolol, a beta 1 selective blocker, on the retinal circulation in 10 patients with ocular hypertension. In a masked randomised fashion, one eye of each subject received betaxolol and the fellow eye received placebo (hypromellose). Retinal blood flow (RBF) was determined in a major temporal vein of each eye just prior to instillation of drops and 2 h later, using laser Doppler velocimetry and monochromatic fundus photography. There was an increase of 15.0% in RBF (p = 0.03) in the betaxolol-treated eyes. No significant change was observed in the placebo-treated eyes. Intraocular pressure was reduced by 27.7% in the treated eyes, resulting in an increase of 16.9% in perfusion pressure (p = 0.02) compared with an 8.4% increase in placebo-treated eyes (p = 0.15). This study demonstrated that betaxolol increases RBF in eyes with ocular hypertension; this increase is probably related to the increase in perfusion pressure.
authors.affiliation: Diabetic Retinopathy Unit, Royal Postgraduate Medical School, Hammersmith Hospital, London, UK.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gupta
authors.forename: H C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Rassam
authors.forename: E M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Kohner
mesh_terms: D000287:Administration, Topical; D015784:Betaxolol / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D007429:Intraocular Pressure / Q000187:drug effects; D009798:Ocular Hypertension / Q000188:drug therapy*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D012039:Regional Blood Flow / Q000187:drug effects; D012171:Retinal Vessels / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D015784:Betaxolol