Ganfort beats Xalacom

A bimatoprost and timolol fixed combination (Ganfort; Allergan) is more effective at lowering intraocular pressure (IOP) over 12 weeks than latanoprost (Xalacom; Pfizer), according to results presented at the meeting of the European Glaucoma Society (EGS), held June 1–6 in Berlin.

Antonio Martinez of the Instituto Gallego de Oftalmologia, Spain and colleagues conducted a prospective, randomized, evaluator masked, single centre crossover study, in which open angle glaucoma (OAG) patients (n=54; eyes=108) received a once daily evening dose of either Ganfort or Xalacom for 12 weeks, following an initial six week treatment regime of twice daily timolol maleate 0.5%. Patients in the Ganfort arm then received a further 12 weeks of treatment with Xalacom, and patients in the Xalacom arm went on to receive 12 weeks of Ganfort treatment. IOP was measured at baseline, and at weeks six and 12 of each treatment period; mean IOP range across a 12-hour period was also evaluated.

After 12 weeks of treatment, subjects had a mean baseline IOP of 22.0 mmHg; 12 hours post-treatment, patients treated with Ganfort had a mean IOP of 17.7 mmHg whereas patients treated with Xalacom had a mean IOP of 18.5 mmHg. Ganfort subjects showed a mean IOP fluctuation range of 4.8 mmHg; in Xalacom-treated patients, the range was 5.9 mmHg.

Thus the researchers concluded that, whilst both treatments are efficacious, Ganfort is slightly more effective than Xalacom in reducing IOP in OAG subjects.