[Effect of ciliary muscle electrical stimulation on ocular hydrodynamics and visual function in patients with...

A course of transscleral electrostimulation of the ciliary muscle (10 sessions) using ESOF-1 device was administered to 20 patients (23 eyes) with bilateral primary open-angle glaucoma. A lens with 4 electrodes was placed on the eyeball in the ciliary body projection. Rectangular bipolar pulses up to 15 msec long were generated in the pack mode with current amplitude up to 10 mA for 3 to 7 min. Control group consisted of 17 "paired" eyes. After electrostimulation the accommodation volume increased by 54%, relative accommodation reserve by 34%, coefficient of discharge by 42%, and vision acuity by 0.1 to 0.4 diopters in 6 out of 7 eyes in which vision was lower than 1.0 diopter; intraocular pressure was 16% decreased and the number of absolute and relative scotomas in the central visual field (Humphry, 24-2) dropped by 40%. Improvement of the visual functions and hydrodynamic parameters of the eye was gradual, reaching the maximum by the end of the follow-up (6 months). In control eyes no positive changes were observed. The results indicate a positive effect of electrostimulation of the ciliary body and posterior ocular structures on intraocular fluid circulation and visual functions.