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Povidone-iodine effective against some conjunctivitis
LOS ANGELES — Povidone-iodine ophthalmic solution is as effective as a leading antibiotic in treating conjunctivitis, a study found. The inexpensive and widely available antiseptic should be considered as an alternative for treating conjunctivitis in developing countries where antibiotics may be costly or unavailable, researchers said.
Sherwin Isenberg, MD, and colleagues at the UCLA Medical Center and at the Philippine General Hospital in Manila studied 459 children with acute conjunctivitis. Infected eyes were tested for Chlamydia trachomatis. Patients were alternated to receive either povidone-iodine 1.25% or neomycin-polymyxin-B-gramicidin ophthalmic solution, one drop 4 times daily in the affected eye.
No significant differences were found between treatment groups regarding the number of days to cure or proportion cured at weeks 1 or 2, whether the infection was caused by bacteria or virus. After 1 week, the povidone cured marginally more chlamydial infections than the antibiotic did. Conjunctivitis tended to resolve faster in younger than older patients.
The study is published in the November issue of American Journal of Ophthalmology.