Clinical trial of flurbiprofen to maintain pupillary dilation during cataract surgery

Thirty-four patients undergoing elective extracapsular cataract extraction were divided into a control group (18 patients) and treatment group (16 patients) in a double-blinded study to evaluate the nonsteroidal, anti-inflammatory drug flurbiprofen as an aid for maintaining pupil dilation during surgery. Both groups received the routine preoperative dilating drops, and the treatment group also received 0.03% topical flurbiprofen. After lens extraction, the change in pupil diameter from the preoperative measurement averaged -2.5 mm in the treatment group and -3.9 mm in the control group. The difference between groups was significant (p = 0.003), favoring flurbiprofen for maintaining pupil dilation.