Topical Pirfenidone drops diminish opacity in dogs with corneal defects, in vitro safety, and in vivo efficacy – A pilot study

Abstract

To evaluate pirfenidone topical drops as an adjunct therapy to reduce post-recovery opacity in dogs with corneal defects. Corneal epithelial cells were treated with moxifloxacin, flurbiprofen, with and without 0.5% pirfenidone to rule out any adverse effect of pirfenidone. Non-diabetic dogs with corneal defects were treated with 0.5% drops of pirfenidone along with topical drugs used to treat the control dogs. At the end of two weeks, all dogs were evaluated and graded for corneal healing and opacity under a slit-lamp biomicroscope. There was no adverse influence of co-treating corneal cells with pirfenidone, moxifloxacin, and flurbiprofen. Pirfenidone as an adjunct therapy was well tolerated by dogs with corneal defects. The corneal healing was complete and opacity was significantly reduced ( P = 0.0003) in dogs treated with pirfenidone drops in comparison to control dogs. Pirfenidone is effective in preventing corneal opacity; further investigation in a larger population is warranted.