Bevacizumab and rapamycin reduces central corneal haze and apoptotic keratocyte number after photorefractive keratectomy (PRK).

, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Asan Medical Center, Seoul, Korea, studied a total of 60 right eyes of Sprague-Dawley rats separated into four groups of 15 eyes. The groups included eyes soaked with 0.02% mitomycin C (MMC), eyes administered 2.5% bevacizumab, eyes that received 0.01% rapamycin and a control group.

Each rat underwent PRK ablation to 80 μm with a 3-mm zone. All right eyes were exposed to 100 mJ/cm2 UV-B irradiation at three weeks postoperatively. The amount of haze was determined by biomicroscopy and TUNEL staining was used for apoptosis. Histology was also performed at three, six and twelve weeks.

At three weeks after PRK, central corneal haze, apoptotic keratocyte and keratocyte number significantly decreased in the MMC, bevacizumab and rapamycin groups, compared to the control group.

Keratocyte number was lower in the MMC group compared to the bevacizumab and rapamycin groups at six weeks. Apoptotic keratocyte number was lower in the MMC, bevacizumab and rapamycin groups at twelve weeks, compared to the control group.

Bevacizumab and rapamycin could be safe alternatives to MMC during refractive surgery, in order to prevent postoperative corneal opacity.

The study can be found in the latest online issue of 

Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science