Efficacy of treatments for neurotrophic keratopathy: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Purpose Management of NK can be difficult, involving a range of treatments with variable efficacy. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the efficacy of medical and surgical treatments for neurotrophic keratitis (NK). Method PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase, ClinicalTrial.gov , and ScienceDirect were searched for studies assessing efficacy of NK treatments. We computed random-effect meta-analyses on corneal healing, time to complete healing, and visual acuity changes between baselines and after treatment, stratified on treatment classes. We followed the PRISMA guidelines (registration number CRD42021225721). Results We included 20 studies: 571 patients and 5 treatment classes (2 surgical and 3 non-surgical). The percentage of patients with complete corneal healing did not differ between specific treatments (nerve growth factor eyedrops (NGF), 75%, 95CI 46 to 104%; autologous serum (AS), 92%, 86 to 98%; neurotization, 99%, 95 to 103%; amniotic membrane transplantation (AMT), 86%, 78 to 94%). All specific treatments had better percentage of complete healing (p < 0.001) than non-specific treatment groups, i.e., mainly lubricants (23%, 14 to 32). Time to complete healing was 24.2 days (5.4 to 43.1) with NGF, 27.6 days (15.2 to 40.0) with AS, 117 days (28.8 to 205.2) with neurotization, and 16.4 days (11.1 to 21.7) with AMT. Only NGF and AMT improved visual acuity. Efficacy outcomes were not affected by sociodemographic (age, sex) nor severity of disease (Mackie stages). Conclusion We confirmed the efficacy of specific treatments in NK. Further comparative trials are needed to investigate the medical and economic benefits of innovative therapies.

Automated summary

The management of neurotrophic keratitis can be challenging due to the variety of treatments available. This systematic review and meta-analysis confirmed the efficacy of specific treatments for NK, with nerve growth factor eyedrops and amniotic membrane transplantation showing improvements in visual acuity. Further comparative trials are needed to assess the medical and economic benefits of innovative therapies in treating NK.