February 03, 2026
2 min read
Key takeaways:
- At 1 month, patients experienced an average myopic shift of 0.22 D.
- More than 13% of patients had a myopic shift of at least 0.75 D.
Omidenepag isopropyl eye drops may increase nearsightedness in patients with glaucoma, leading to myopic shifts of 0.75 D or more, according to a study published in Journal of Glaucoma.
“Omidenepag isopropyl is a relatively new glaucoma medication that works differently from traditional prostaglandin analogs,” study author Jin-Soo Kim, MD, associate professor in the department of ophthalmology at Chungnam National University Sejong Hospital, Korea, told Healio. “While it has the advantage of avoiding prostaglandin-associated periorbitopathy, there have been reports of side effects like myopia. However, previous studies were mostly retrospective, and the exact mechanism behind this myopic shift was unclear.”
Kim and colleagues conducted a prospective observational study of 44 eyes of 44 patients diagnosed with primary open-angle glaucoma at their clinic between February and December 2022.
Each patient was prescribed omidenepag isopropyl 0.002% at baseline and instructed to instill one drop once daily. Omidenepag isopropyl 0.002% is marketed as Omlonti (Ocuvex Therapeutics) in the United States and as Eybelis (Santen) in Asia.
One month later, researchers evaluated the change in refractive error, keratometry, corneal topography, optical biometry, visual acuity and IOP. Six patients (13.6%) had a myopic shift of at least 0.75 D. On average, there was a myopic shift of 0.22 D.
“The most important finding is that myopic shift is more common than previously thought,” Kim said, adding that other studies reported rates around 1%. He explained that the discrepancy could be due to the study’s prospective nature.
“In retrospective studies based on medical records, refractive error is typically not remeasured at 1 month unless the patient complains of reduced vision,” he said. “By proactively measuring refraction in all patients regardless of symptoms, our prospective study was able to capture these ‘silent’ shifts that previous studies may have overlooked.”
There were significant increases in corneal curvature, as measured by keratometry (P = .026) and total keratometry (P = .007). Significant increases were observed in central corneal thickness at the pupil center (P = .013) and corneal apex (P = .038), and lens thickness increased (P = .004). Average anterior chamber depth significantly decreased (P < .001).
“We hope these findings help clinicians better manage their glaucoma patients by anticipating potential visual changes when prescribing this effective medication,” Kim said.
Future studies should look at the myopic shift over longer time periods to see if it is temporary, he said.
For more information:
Jin-Soo Kim, MD, can be reached at plastichaos@live.com.
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