Oral Glycerin in Cataract Surgery

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Abstract
Osmotic agents represent a new approach to induced hypotonla in cataract surgery. Glycerine has 2 distinct advantages over urea and mannltol. It is effective when given orally and it causes no serious side effects. The average fall in ocular pressure in 378 eyes of 206 patients given preoperative glycerine was 5.4 mm. This was compared with a control series of 67 eyes of 34 patients (no glycerine given) undergoing cataract surgery wherein the ocular pressure dropped only 0.4 mm. The patients with relatively high normal ocular pressure experienced a greater fall than those with lower pressure. This is significant since the greatest need for reduction is in the eye with a higher pressure. Following digital pressure just prior to the cataract incision the ocular pressure in 20 control eyes fell from 16.7 mm. to 8.7 mm. In the glycerine series, where glycerine was combined with retrobulbar injection and digital pressure, the ocular pressure fell from 11.9 mm to 5.2 mm in 164 patients. As a result of these findings, oral glycerine is used routinely in all cases of cataract surgery.

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