EFFICACY OF A MYDRIATIC SPRAY IN THE PEDIATRIC POPULATION

Background. Children often resist instillation of mydriatic drops for dilated fundus evaluation. As cycloplegic sprays have proven useful, t his study's aim was to demonstrate efficacy of a mydriatic spray, Meth ods. Twenty-two healthy subjects, ages 2 to 8 years, participated in t he study, All but two had dark brown irides. Subjects were given eithe r one drop each of 1% tropicamide and 2.5% phenylephrine in each eye o r one application of mydriatic spray (containing concentrations of 0.5 % tropicamide and 2.5% phenylephrine) to each closed eyelid. Pupils we re measured with a pupil gauge before drug delivery and every 10 min t hereafter, for 40 min. Results. Repeated measures analysis of variance for the five time intervals demonstrated no significant difference be tween the two application methods nor in the method/time interaction, but a statistically significant increase in pupil size over time (p < 0.0005) for each method, A t-test revealed no statistically significan t difference in pupil size (p > 0.05) between the two methods of drug administration at 40 min after application, Conclusions. This study su ggests that use of mydriatic sprays on closed eyelids is as efficaciou s as use of mydriatic drops in open eyes for children.