Effect of ketorolac on Candida albicans ocular infection in rabbits

The tendency of corticosteroids to exacerbate ocular infections limits their usefulness. Ketorolac tromethamine, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agent, is under development as an anti-inflammatory ophthalmic drug. In this study, rabbits ocularly infected with Candida albicans were treated topically four times daily with 0.5% ketorolac tromethamine or 0.1% dexamethasone for seven days after infection. Severity of infection was scored using both the Draize scale and Candida colony counts. Seven days after treatment ended, both the overall ocular scores (6/20) and colony count scores (0.5/3) were the same for ketorolac as for the vehicle, indicating no exacerbation of the infection, whereas with dexamethasone these values increased (13/20 and 2.3/3, respectively). During treatment, both ketorolac and dexamethasone reduced conjunctivitis equally (1.5/10) when compared with the vehicle (3.4/10). However, after treatment, conjunctivitis became more severe only in dexamethasone-treated eyes (6/10). Thus, unlike dexamethasone, ketorolac seems to be a drug that can suppress inflammation without exacerbating fungal ocular infection.