title: Comparison of the effect of cycloplegic versus NSAID eye drops on pain after photorefractive keratectomy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare the effect of Homatropine and Diclofenac eye drops for reducing pain after photorefractive keratectomy (PRK).
  
  
  METHODS
  This randomized, double-masked, interventional study included 32 patients (64 eyes) who underwent bilateral PRK. After operation, patients received Homatropine eye drops in one eye and Diclofenac eye drops in the fellow eye for 48 h. The level of pain was evaluated using visual analogue scale (VAS), verbal rating scale (VRS), and pain rating index (PRI) at 0.5, 24, and 48 h after operation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The level of pain was statistically similar between the two eyes half an hour after operation; however, Diclofenac eyes had significantly less pain 24 h after operation (1.7 ± 1.4 vs 5.8 ± 2.1, P < 0.001 for VAS, 0.6 ± 0.6 vs 2.4 ± 1.1, P < 0.001 for VRS, and 3.4 ± 3.4 vs 12.0 ± 6.9, P < 0.001 for PRI, respectively). Also, 48 h after surgery, the pain scores were less in the Diclofenac eyes (1.6 ± 1.8 vs 3.4 ± 2.8, P < 0.001 for VAS, 0.6 ± 0.6 vs 1.2 ± 0.9, P < 0.001 for VRS, and 3.3 ± 3.7 vs 6.5 ± 6.2, P < 0.001 for PRI). No case with delayed epithelial healing in both groups was observed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The effect of Homatropine seems to be lower compared to Diclofenac for reducing pain after photorefractive keratectomy.
authors.affiliation: Eye Research Center, Department of Ophthalmology, Rassoul Akram Hospital, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Brain and Spinal Cord Injury Research Center, Neuroscience Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Kaveh
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Abri Aghdam
authors.affiliation: Eye Research Center, Department of Ophthalmology, Rassoul Akram Hospital, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Hossein
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Aghaei
authors.affiliation: Eye Research Center, Department of Ophthalmology, Rassoul Akram Hospital, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Siamak
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shokrollahi
authors.affiliation: Eye Research Center, Department of Ophthalmology, Rassoul Akram Hospital, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mahmoud
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Joshaghani
authors.affiliation: Doheny Eye Institute, University of Southern California (USC), Los Angeles, USA.
authors.forename: Hossein
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nazari
authors.affiliation: Eye Research Center, Department of Ophthalmology, Rassoul Akram Hospital, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Masih
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hashemi
authors.affiliation: Eye Research Center, Department of Ophthalmology, Rassoul Akram Hospital, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mohammad Jafar
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Ghaempanah
keywords: Cycloplegic; Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug; Pain; Photorefractive keratectomy