Table 2
Summary of retrieved RCTs on the use of ocular medications in the paediatric population
| Pharmaco-therapeutic Group | Drug name | Formulation | N° RCTs | N° Children | Age range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MYDRIATIC/CYCLOPLEGIC MEDICATIONS | 74 (35%) | ||||
| Antimuscarinic agent | Atropine | eye drops 1% | 31 | 3530 | all |
| Cyclopentolate | eye drops 0.5% | 2 | 28 | ≤ 13 yrs | |
| eye drops 1% | 11 | 181 | ≤ 16 yrs | ||
| Tropicamide | eye drops 1% | 9 | 348 | all | |
| Pirenzepine | ophthalmic gel 1% | 3 | 276 | 6 - 12 yrs | |
| Cyclopentolate/Tropicamide | eye drops 1%/1% | 6 | 176 | all | |
| Sympathomimetic agent | Phenylephrine | eye drops 2.5% | 1 | 10 | ≤ 1 m |
| Antimuscarinic agent + Sympathomimetic agent | Tropicamide/Phenylephrine | eye drops 1%/2.5% | 3 | 92 | ≤ 1 m |
| eye drops 0.5%/2.5% | 2 | 51 | ≤ 8 yrs | ||
| eye drops 0.5%/0.5% | 1 | 12 | 3-11 yrs | ||
| Cyclopentolate/Phenylephrine | eye drops 1%/2.5% | 2 | 30 | ≤ 6 yrs | |
| eye drops 0.2%/1% | 3 | 99 | ≤ 1 m | ||
| ANTI-INFECTIVE MEDICATIO NS | 51 (24%) | ||||
| Antibacterial agent | Chloramphenicol | eye drops 0.5% | 7 | 1664 | ≤ 12 yrs |
| Azithromycin | eye drops 1% | 1 | 335 | ≥ 1 yr | |
| eye drops 1.5% | 2 | 542 | ≥ 1 yr | ||
| Tetracycline | eye drops 1% | 2 | 518 | 1- 10 yrs | |
| eye ointment 1% | 2 | 218 | ≥ 6 ms | ||
| Besifloxacin | eye suspension 0.6% | 3 | 1124 | ≥ 1yr | |
| Fusidic acid | eye drops 1% | 3 | 594 | ≤ 2 yrs | |
| Moxifloxacin | eye drops 0.5% | 3 | 645 | all | |
| Tobramycin | eye drops | 3 | 741 | ≤ 12 yrs | |
| Ciprofloxacin | eye drops 0.3% | 2 | 193 | ≤ 12 yrs | |
| Levofloxacin | eye drops 0.5% | 2 | 106 | 1-16 yrs | |
| Gentamycin | eye ointment | 2 | 117 | ≤ 12 yrs | |
| Erythromycin | eye drops | 1 | 110 | ≤ 1 m | |
| eye ointment | 1 | 24 | ≤ 1 yr | ||
| Ofloxacin | eye drops 0.3% | 1 | 23 | ≥2 yrs | |
| Oxytetracycline | eye drops 1% | 1 | 450 | ≤ 1 m | |
| Sulphacetamide | eye drops 10% | 1 | 14 | ≤ 1 m | |
| Antibacterials combinations | Polymixin B/Oxytetracycline | eye ointment | 2 | 132 | 2-10 yrs |
| Polymixin B/Bacitracin | eye ointment | 1 | 66 | ≥ 1 m | |
| Polymixin B/Trimethoprim | eye drops | 1 | 28 | all | |
| Antibacterial agent + NSAID | Gentamycin/Diclofenac | eye drops | 1 | 12 | ≤ 12 yrs |
| Antibacterial agent + Steroid agent | Neomycin/Betamethasone | eye drops | 1 | 12 | ≤ 12 yrs |
| Tobramycin/Dexamethasone | eye drops | 1 | 28 | 4-10 yrs | |
| Antifungal agents | Miconazole | eye suspension 1% | 1 | 12 | ≥ 15 yr |
| Econazole/Miconazole | eye suspension 1%/1% | 1 | 7 | ≥ 15 yr | |
| Other anti-infective eye preparation | Povidone-iodine | eye drops 2.5% | 4 | 3132 | ≤ 1 yr |
| Silver nitrate | eye drops 1% | 1 | 450 | ≤ 1 m | |
| ANTI-ALLERGY MEDICATIONS | 31 (15%) | ||||
| Anti-histamine agent | Levocabastine | eye suspension 0.5% | 6 | 174 | ≥ 3 yrs |
| Ketotifen | eye drops 0.025% | 5 | 522 | ≥ 3 yrs | |
| Olopatadine | eye drops 0.2% | 4 | 99 | ≥ 3 yrs | |
| Azelastine | eye drops 0.02% | 4 | 132 | ≥ 4 yrs | |
| Bepotastine | eye drops 1% | 1 | 36 | ≥ 10 yrs | |
| eye drops 1.5% | 1 | 36 | ≥ 10 yrs | ||
| Emedastine | eye drops 0.05% | 1 | - | 3-16 yrs | |
| Mast cell stabilizer | Lodoxamide | eye drops 0.1% | 1 | 15 | ≥ 6 yrs |
| Cromoglycate | eye drops 2% | 4 | 128 | ≥ 4 yrs | |
| eye drops 4% | 1 | 30 | ≥ 16 yrs | ||
| Nedocromil | eye drops 2% | 3 | 85 | ≥ 4 yrs | |
| ANTI-INFLAMMATORY MEDICATIONS | 18 (9%) | ||||
| Corticosteroid | Dexamethasone | eye drops 0.1% | 6 | 159 | all |
| Fluorometholone | eye drops 0.1% | 3 | 52 | ≤ 10 yrs | |
| Rimexolone | eye drops 1% | 1 | 22 | 4 - 8 yrs | |
| NSAID | Diclofenac | eye drops 0.1% | 4 | 93 | ≥ 2 yrs |
| Ketorolac | eye drops 0.5% | 3 | 70 | ≤ 12 yrs | |
| Flurbiprofen | eye drops | 1 | 50 | ≥ 5 yrs | |
| ANTIGLAUCOMA MEDICATIONS | 10 (5%) | ||||
| Beta-blocker | Timolol | eye drops 0.25% | 2 | 44 | 7-13 yrs |
| eye drops 0.5% | 1 | 12 | ≥ 14 yrs | ||
| gel-forming solution 0.25% | 1 | 35 | ≤ 6yrs | ||
| gel-forming solution 0.5% | 1 | 36 | ≤ 6yrs | ||
| Betaxolol | eye suspension 0.25% | 1 | 52 | ≤ 6 yrs | |
| Levobetaxolol | eye suspension 0.5% | 1 | 46 | ≤ 6 yrs | |
| Carbonic anhydrase inhibitor | Brinzolamide | eye suspension 1% | 1 | 32 | ≤ 6 yrs |
| Dorzolamide | eye drops 2% | 1 | 56 | ≤ 6 yrs | |
| Acetylcholinesterase inhibitor | Echothophate iodide | eye drops | 1 | 20 | - |
| PERI-OPERATIVE MEDICATIONS | 18 (9%) | ||||
| Local anaesthetic agent | Bupivacaine | subconjuntival infiltration | 2 | 38 | 5-10 yrs |
| eye drops 0.5% | 1 | 17 | 3-6 yrs | ||
| Proparacaine | eye drops 0.5% | 3 | 58 | ≤ 1 m | |
| Lidocaine | eye drops 2% | 1 | 10 | 3 - 14 yrs | |
| ophthalmic gel 2% | 1 | 24 | 3-12 yrs | ||
| Amethocaine | eye drops 0.5% | 2 | 45 | 2 - 8 yrs | |
| Levobupivacaine | eye drops | 1 | 13 | 1 - 16 yrs | |
| Oxybuprocaine | eye drops 0.4% | 1 | 20 | 3-8 yrs | |
| Tetracaine | eye drops 1% | 1 | 44 | 1-12 yrs | |
| Sucrose | eye drops | 1 | 11 | ≤1 m | |
| Chemotherapeutic agents | Mitomicyn C | eye drops 0.02% | 1 | 10 | ≥ 6 yrs |
| ocular injection 0.4% | 1 | 7 | ≥ 6 yrs | ||
| 5-fluorouracil | ocular injection | 1 | 4 | ≤ 12 yrs | |
| Mitomicyn C/5-fluorouracil | ocular injection | 1 | 4 | ≤ 12 yrs | |
| OTHER DRUGS | 7 (3%) | ||||
| Vernal keratoconjunctivitis | Cyclosporine | eye drops 2% | 1 | 14 | 5-16 yrs |
| eye drops 1.25% | 1 | 20 | 5-14 yrs | ||
| eye drops 1% | 1 | 32 | 5-14 yrs | ||
| Mipragoside | ophthalmic gel 0.5% | 1 | 12 | 5-20 yrs | |
| ROP therapy | Bevacizumab | intravitreal injection | 1 | 7 | ≤ 1 m |
| Esotropia | Botulinum toxin | ocular injection | 1 | 27 | 6-12 yrs |
| Dacryocystitis | Herba houttuyaniae | eye drops | 1 | 268 | ≤ 1 m |
| TOTAL (69 single drugs & combinations) | 209 | 18,816 | |||
NOTE: the total is higher than the sum of the RCTs (158) because some drugs were tested in more than one trial. The references to RCTs are available upon request to the corresponding author.