An investigation published in the Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery has demonstrated that a single drop of topical diclofenac is effective for postoperative pain relief after photorefractive keratectomy (PRK).

Dr Mehrdad Mohammadpour et al., Farabi Eye Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, conducted a randomized, masked, clinical trial of 140 eyes of 70 patients. Each patient received 1 drop of diclofenac 0.1% in 1 eye and 1 drop of placebo in the other eye 2 hours before PRK. Both eyes were then administered topical diclofenac every 6 hours for 2 days, postoperatively. Patients rated the pain in each eye using an 11-point verbal numerical rating scale.

All 70 patients were involved in the statistical evaluation and reported significantly lower pain scores than the placebo eyes 24 hours after PRK. The results demonstrate that the use of a single drop of 0.1% diclofenac is an effective method of preventing pain.