Alice T Epitropoulos, Soham J Barot, Richard L Lindstrom, Richard Costine
CsA/SFA was associated with clinically and statistically significant improvements in both patient-reported symptoms and corneal staining over six months, with concordant improvements in subjective and objective outcome measures. These findings support its use as an effective therapeutic option for moderate DED.
PURPOSE: To evaluate real-world clinical outcomes and treatment patterns associated with long-term use of cyclosporine 0.1% in semifluorinated alkane (SFA) (VEVYE®, Harrow Inc, Nashville, TN, USA) in patients with dry eye disease (DED), focusing on patient-reported symptoms, and corneal staining.
METHODS: This retrospective, real-world evidence, observational study analyzed electronic medical records from 55 patients with DED treated with cyclosporine 0.1% in SFA (CsA/SFA) for at least six months. Patient-reported symptoms were assessed using the Standard Patient Evaluation of Eye Dryness (SPEED) questionnaire. Corneal fluorescein staining was evaluated using the Oxford grading scale. All outcomes were compared from baseline to the most recent follow-up visit using paired statistical tests, with a two-sided p-value of less than 0.05 considered statistically significant.
RESULTS: The cohort comprised 48 female and 7 male patients. Mean SPEED scores decreased from 12.53 ± 7.17 to 8.36 ± 5.77, representing a clinically and statistically relevant 33.2% reduction (p < 0.001). Mean Oxford staining scores demonstrated clinically and statistically relevant decreases from 1.11 ± 0.83 to 0.49 ± 0.54 in the right eye (55.7% reduction; p < 0.001) and from 1.14 ± 0.84 to 0.59 ± 0.65 in the left eye (48.0% reduction; p < 0.001).
CONCLUSION: CsA/SFA was associated with clinically and statistically significant improvements in both patient-reported symptoms and corneal staining over six months, with concordant improvements in subjective and objective outcome measures. These findings support its use as an effective therapeutic option for moderate DED.