[Cryotherapy in vernal conjunctivitis]

Twenty five patients (mostly boys between the ages of nine and 14) suffering from vernal conjunctivitis were treated by cryotherapy. Three cryocycles, each of one to two minutes' duration, consisting in contact freezing at -160 degrees C, were performed under local anesthetic. There was very rapid regression of the acute inflammatory symptoms within a few days. At the same time, the eosinophil count in the smear preparation decreased considerably. The "cobblestones" only flattened out in the course of several weeks, following repeated sessions.