Effect of Pilocarpine 0.2% for the Treatment of Presbyopia

Objective: To determine the effect of Pilocarpine 0.2% for the treatment of presbyopia. Study Design: Quasi-experimental Study. Place and Duration of Study: Ophthalmology Department, POF Hospital, Wah Cantt, Pakistan from Jul to Sep 2024. Methodology: One hundred and five patients (40–55 years) with presbyopia impacting daily activities were selected. Near vision was recorded before and after 1 hour of instillation of 0.2 % Pilocarpine drops and improvement in the number of lines in near vision was recorded. Patients were further divided into three Groups based on their age, i.e., 35 patients in each Group. Group 1 (40 to 45 years); Group 2 (46 to 50 years); and Group 3 (51 to 55 years). Improvement in near vision in each Group was also recorded. Results: Among 105 participants, 48(46.0%) were females and 57(54.0%) were males. Topical Pilocarpine 0.2% was instilled in 105 individuals; 93 of them had an improvement in their near vision, whereas 12(11.4%) patients showed no improvement. Out of 93 patients who showed improvement, 56(53.3%) patients showed improvement of 1 line, 32(30.5%) patients showed improvement of 2 lines, and 5(4.8%) patients showed improvement of 3 lines in near vision. Improvement in near vision in each Group was also analyzed and it was statistically significant (p-value 0.024). Younger age Group showed more improvement as compared to older patients with Pilocarpine 0.2%. Conclusion: Topical Pilocarpine 0.2% for the treatment of presbyopia is effective and has encouraging excellent results, especially in early presbyopia.