Diclofenac prevents temporal increase of intraocular pressure after uneventful cataract surgery with longer operation time

PURPOSE: This study compares the effect of topical diclofenac with that of betamethasone against postoperative increase of intraocular pressure (IOP) after cataract surgery in normal patients, and also investigated the risk factors for postoperative increase of IOP in each group. METHODS: Fifty consecutive patients without systemic disease who have bilateral and symmetrical cataracts underwent uncomplicated cataract surgery in both eyes (100 eyes in total). Postoperatively, topical diclofenac was applied 4 times daily to one eye, and topical betamethasone to the other eye in each patient. IOP and best corrected logMAR visual acuity (BCVA) in each eye were measured up to 8 weeks. Total surgery time and effective phacoemulsification time (EPT) for each case was recorded. RESULTS: BCVA in both diclofenac- and betamethasone-treated eyes significantly improved after the cataract surgery; however, no statistical difference in VA was noted between the diclofenac- and betamethasone-treated eyes throughout the observation period. IOP in the diclofenac-treated eyes decreased with time, in contrast to the IOP in the betamethasone-treated eyes, which showed a slight increase. At 4 and 8 weeks postoperatively, there was significant difference between these two eye groups. Multiple regression analysis revealed that postoperative increase in IOP at 8 weeks in the betamethasone-treated eyes was closely correlated with total surgery time and EPT, but the IOP in the diclofenac-treated eyes showed no correlation with any surgical or clinical parameters. CONCLUSIONS: Postoperative increase in IOP after cataract surgery was affected by total surgery time and EPT in the betamethasone-treated eye. The time for surgery and EPT is longer in complicated cases including patients with a hard nucleus or small pupils, and also longer for beginning surgeons and in older patients. In these cases, diclofenac in place of betamethasone as a postoperative topical antiinflammatory drug is recommended for the prevention of postoperative increase in IOP.