Why carry out this study?

Photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) is a very common laser refractive surgery in which patients usually experience postoperative pain. Easing the pain may benefit many patients worldwide.

Nepafenac, a topical nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug (NSAID), is not usually prescribed for treatment of pain after refractive surgery.

In this study we aimed to compare postoperative pain between alcohol-assisted and transepithelial PRK in patients who received nepafenac treatment 2 days preoperatively and 3 days postoperatively to determine whether its use might reduce postoperative pain.

What was learned from the study?

After being treated with nepafenac, patients who underwent the alcohol-assisted PRK procedure had significantly higher pain levels compared with those who underwent transepithelial-PRK.

Stress levels decreased over time in both groups, with levels becoming almost equal after 5 days, and there was no significant difference in the average stress levels between the two groups.