title: Comparative Evaluation of Tacrolimus Versus Interferon Alpha-2b Eye Drops in the Treatment of Vernal Keratoconjunctivitis: A Randomized, Double-Masked Study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Vernal keratoconjunctivitis (VKC) is a bilateral, chronic, external ocular inflammatory disorder that mainly affects patients in their first or second decade. This study was designed to compare tacrolimus and interferon alpha-2b (IFN alpha-2b) eye drops in the treatment of VKC.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this randomized, double-masked clinical trial, 40 consecutive patients with VKC were sent to a referral eye hospital in a tropical region southeast of Iran. Patients were randomly assigned to receive either 0.005% tacrolimus or IFN alpha-2b (1,000,000 units/cc). Chi-square and t tests were used for comparison of outcomes between both groups.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mean ± SD age was 11.1 ± 5.2 years. Thirty-one patients (77.5%) were male. The mean duration of disease was 3.4 ± 2.9 years. In this study, the signs and symptoms were significantly reduced in patients after treatment in both groups (P = 0.0001). In the tacrolimus group, all patients responded to treatment whereas only one subject in the IFN group failed to respond (P = 0.99). Side effects in both groups were mild and tolerable.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study indicated that both 0.005% tacrolimus and IFN alpha-2b are effective and appear to be safe in treatment of recalcitrant VKC.
authors.affiliation: *Department of Ophthalmology, Alzahra Eye Hospital, Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, Zahedan, Iran; †Eye Research Center, Department of Ophthalmology, Farabi Eye Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; ‡Cancer Research Center, Semnan University of Medical Sciences, Semnan, Iran; §Department of Ophthalmology, Isfahan Eye Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran; and ¶Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, Zahedan, Iran.
authors.forename: Habibollah
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zanjani
authors.forename: Mohammad Naim
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Aminifard
authors.forename: Abdolhossein
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ghafourian
authors.forename: Mohsen
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pourazizi
authors.forename: Alireza
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Maleki
authors.forename: Mohammed
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Arish
authors.forename: Mahnaz
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shahrakipoor
authors.forename: Mohammad Reza
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Rohani
authors.forename: Mojtaba
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Abrishami
authors.forename: Ehsan
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Khafri Zare
authors.forename: Farhad
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Barzegar Jalali
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D003233:Conjunctivitis, Allergic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007155:Immunologic Factors / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000077190:Interferon alpha-2; D016898:Interferon-alpha / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D009883:Ophthalmic Solutions; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016559:Tacrolimus / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D007155:Immunologic Factors; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D000077190:Interferon alpha-2; D016898:Interferon-alpha; D009883:Ophthalmic Solutions; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D016559:Tacrolimus