Journal of Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology
Open Access

Abstract

Efficacy of Sublingual Use of Ketorolac Tromethamine in Reducing Pain During Treatment with Laser Photocoagulation in Patients with Diabetic Retinopathy Double Blind, Randomized, Sham-Controlled Study

Luiz Guilherme Azevedo de Freitas, Roberta Albuquerque de Azevedo Paiva, Thais Maria Pinheiro Callou, Danielle de Albuquerque Carrera Araújo, Clovis Arcoverde de Freitas Neto, Tania Cursino de Menezes Couceiro, Theophilo José de Freitas Neto and Marcos Pereira de Ávila

Objective: To evaluate the analgesic effect of sublingual ketorolac tromethamine during argon laser photocoagulation in patients with diabetic retinopathy.
Methods: A double blind, randomized, sham - controlled study, was conducted in 60 patients with diabetic retinopathy, referred for argon laser panretinal photocoagulation (PRP). For the evaluation of pain intensity, a numerical scale from zero to ten was used. The trial sample was divided into two groups. Group 1 consisted of 27 patients who used one 10 mg tablet of ketorolac tromethamine and group 2 comprised of 33 patients who used a sham, both with the same method of administration, 30 minutes before application of the laser.
Results: Of the 27 patients in Group 1, 20 (74%) felt pain in the first stage, 5 (19%) experienced pain in the second stage and 2 (7%) felt no pain at any time. Of the 33 patients in Group 2, 27 (82%) felt pain in the first stage, 3 (9%) experienced pain in the second stage and 3 (9%) felt no pain at any time. There was no statistically significant difference between the groups (p=0.65 and 0.33).
Conclusion: Ketorolac tromethamine was not able to reduce pain during panretinal photocoagulation in patients with proliferative diabetic retinopathy.