Comparison of olopatadine with ketotifen for allergic conjunctivitis: a meta-analysis study

INTRODUCTION: Allergic conjunctivitis is one of the most common non-traumatic extraocular inflammatory diseases. AIM: The comparison of olopatadine with ketotifen remains elusive for the treatment of allergic conjunctivitis, and this meta-analysis aims to explore the impact of olopatadine versus ketotifen on treatment efficacy for allergic conjunctivitis. MATERIAL AND METHODS: PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, EBSCO, and Cochrane library databases were systematically searched, and we included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing the effect of olopatadine versus ketotifen on efficacy in patients with allergic conjunctivitis. Seven RCTs were included in the meta-analysis. RESULTS: Overall, compared with ketotifen intervention for allergic conjunctivitis, olopatadine intervention was associated with substantially lower hyperaemia (mean difference (MD) = –0.77; 95% confidence interval (CI) = –1.24 to –0.30; p = 0.001), but demonstrated no significant impact on itching, tearing or papillae. CONCLUSIONS: These suggested that olopatadine may be more effective to relieve the symptoms of allergic conjunctivitis than ketotifen.