Effect of carteolol hydrochloride on ocular blood flow dynamics in normal human eyes

PURPOSE: The effect of topical 2% calteolol hydrochloride on the ocular blood flow dynamics in normal human eyes was studied. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ten healthy volunteers were studied using color Doppler imaging and scanning laser Doppler flowmetry. In the first experiments, one eye received 30 microliters of 2% carteolol hydrochloride twice daily for 7 days and the fellow eye a placebo in a randomized masked manner. The blood flow velocity of the central retinal artery, the ophthalmic artery, and the short posterior ciliary artery, the blood flow volume of the peripapillary retina (PPR), intraocular pressure (IOP), ocular perfusion pressure (OPP) and pulse rate (PR) were measured before treatment, 2 hours after the initial instillation, and after the last instillation on the 7th day. In the control experiments, 30 microliters of placebo was instillated in both eyes, and the above parameters were measured according to the same time schedule as in the first experiments. RESULTS: In the carteolol-treated eyes, the systolic maximum (p = 0.012) and diastolic minimum (p = 0.019) blood flow velocities of the ophthalmic artery, and the blood flow volume of the superior (p = 0.003), central (p = 0.001) and inferior (p = 0.000) PPR showed significant increases in the first experiments compared with the control experiments. IOP and OPP in both eyes showed significant reduction in the first experiments compared with the control study. CONCLUSION: These results indicated that topical carteolol hydrochroride increases the blood flow of the intraorbital microcirculation and PPR.