[Treatment of a severe course of keratoconjunctivitis sicca with eledoisin]

Cases of keratoconjunctivitis sicca with keratitis filiformis (with and without Sjögren's syndrome) with severe courses cannot be treated adequately with artificial tears. Only since the discovery of Eledoisin, which was introduced for ophthalmological therapy by Bietti, has a drug been available which directly stimulates tear secretion. Eledoisin was discovered in the salivary glands of certain Mediterranean species of octopus and can meanwhile be produced synthetically. A randomized study conducted at the University clinics in Heidelberg, Cologne, and Ulm showed that Eledoisin is significantly superior if the statistics are based on cases with severe courses. Cases with less severe courses also respond well to therapy with artificial tears.