Treatment of blepharospasm with apraclonidine.

[OBJECTIVE] To describe improvement in blepharospasm with apraclonidine.

[BACKGROUND] Blepharospasm is a focal dystonia involving chiefly the orbicularis oculi and periocular muscles resulting in involuntary sustained eyelid closure. Botulinum toxin injection is the mainstay of treatment with meaningful improvement in over 85% of patients, but the effects often wear off within 3-4months. Apraclonidine is an alpha-2 adrenergic receptor agonist, which causes contraction of superior tarsal (Müller) muscle which may improve blepharospasm-related eyelid closure. We propose that apraclonidine may be a useful short-term treatment in patients with blepharospasm, particularly during wearing off from botulinum toxin injection.

[METHODS] Patients who had pre-mature wearing off of botulinum injection effect were evaluated before and after the administration of 2 drops of apraclonidine 0.5%-1% solution to each eye. Subjective patient impressions and examiner's impression of symptoms pre and post-apraclonidine administration were recorded. A blinded rater evaluated the videos and provided an independent assessment of the severity of symptoms pre- and post-administration, using a 0-4 scale.

[RESULTS] Our study included 7 patients (4 male) with a mean age of 61years and mean duration of blepharospasm of 3.6years. There was a subjective, albeit transient (about 2-4h) improvement in blepharospasm reported by all patients and by the examiner. The mean severity scores, based on blinded video ratings, showed a reduction from of 3.4 pre-administration to 2.3 post-administration of apraclonidine (p<0.025). No adverse effects were noted.

[CONCLUSIONS] Apraclonidine is a potentially useful medication for short term management of blepharospasm symptoms while awaiting botulinum toxin injection.