Description
What is Alphagan® Brimonidine Tartrate 0.1% / 0.15% / 0.2% Eye Drops?
Alphagan® ophthalmic eye drops are used in the treatment of glaucoma and conditions with high intraocular pressure. The active ingredient is brimonidine, a selective alpha-adrenergic receptor agonist. It acts to restore equilibrium between aqueous humor production and outflow. Brimonidine is the only approved molecule in its class medication for long-term glaucoma treatment.
Brimonidine is particularly useful over beta-blockers in patients with asthma or heart conditions. Brimonidine has relatively fewer side effects than other treatments in glaucoma, and thus it is the safest choice of medication.
Glaucoma is a condition where the optic nerve slowly degenerates until it becomes atrophied. It is the first cause of visual impairment and the second leading cause of blindness after cataracts.
Glaucoma is a disease that can damage the eye’s optic nerve. It usually develops when fluid pressure inside the eye (or eye pressure) slowly rises, causing high eye pressure, or ocular hypertension. Glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness. While there is no cure for glaucoma, studies show that lowering high eye pressure can help reduce the risk of glaucoma-related vision loss. That’s why daily treatment of high eye pressure is very important. Remember, high eye pressure can slowly, but permanently, damage your optic nerve before you notice any change in vision.
Glaucoma is an eye disease that damages the optic nerve which is essential for proper vision. This damage is often caused by abnormally high pressure in the eye. Alphagan P Ophthalmic Solution is used to reduce swelling and pressure inside the eye. This helps prevent complications of glaucoma such as blindness and improves vision. This medicine may be used alone or with other eye drops. Glaucoma cannot be prevented. Frequent monitoring, regular checkups can help detect the disease in its early stages.
Alphagan® is a medicated eye drop approved to lower eye pressure (IOP) in patients with open-angle glaucoma or high eye pressure (ocular hypertension). Alphagan® Ophthalmic Solution offers reduced drug exposure with the lowest dose of active ingredient among all Allergan brimonidine brands. Your doctor can recommend an eye drop to help you manage your glaucoma or high eye pressure. One option is Alphagan-P® 0.1%.
ALPHAGAN® P 0.1% ophthalmic solution is an FDA-approved eye medication used to lower high eye pressure in patients with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension (high eye pressure). There is no FDA-approved generic version of ALPHAGAN® P 0.1%.
Although the exact way Alphagan® Ophthalmic Solution may work is unknown, it is thought to reduce eye pressure in 2 ways:
- Reduces production of extra fluid in the eye
- Drains Extra fluid out of the eye
During treatment with Alphagan® Ophthalmic Solution in clinical trials, the most common side effects patients experienced were: Eye allergies (allergic conjunctivitis), Eye redness (hyperemia), Itchy eyes (eye pruritus).
How to use Alphagan eye drops?
The correct application of eyedrops ensures the delivery of the exact doses to the tissues. Additionally, it prevents the medication from escaping to the systemic circulation and causing side effects a distance from the eyes.
Start by washing your hands and cleaning your face from makeup or cosmetic products. to prevent contamination, avoid touching the applicator tip with your fingers or letting it touch other surfaces. Tilt your head backward and look upwards. Pull on your lower eyelids to create a pouch in which you apply the drops.
Gently close your eyes. And using your thumb, press on the inner angle of your eyes. Applying pressure on the tear duct prevents the medication from seeping into the body.
The recommended dose of Alphagan® is 1 drop 3 times daily, about 8 hours apart. Alphagan® Drops may be used alone or with other glaucoma eye drops to lower eye pressure. If you use more than 1 type of topical eye drop, they should be applied at least 5 minutes apart.
Mechanism of action
Brimonidine lowers intraocular pressure in glaucoma and ocular hypertension patients. Pressure reduction in glaucoma patients is a crucial step in preventing disease progression to vision loss.
Brimonidine has a dual mechanism to reduce intraocular pressure. It reduces the rate of aqueous humor production and promotes its outflow through the drainage meshwork.
The eyeballs keep their shape because they are filled with fluids. Because of the tension generated by the aqueous humor, The eye can retain its physical properties. The ciliary body produces aqueous humor via active secretion. The flow follows a circadian rhythm with higher production in the morning and slower at night.
Aqueous humor occupies the front of the eye. It circulates from the ciliary body in front of the lens. In closed-angle glaucoma, the aqueous humor is blocked by the iris. Because ordinarily, it seeps out of the pupil to fill the space behind the cornea. The site of aqueous humor drainage is the trabecular meshwork and the uveoscleral pathway, both drain into Schlemm’s canal. Finally, the fluid outflows into veins and joins the blood circulation.
With the short-term application, brimonidine reduces the active secretion of aqueous humor by the ciliary body. The chronic treatment showed to enhance drainage by the uveoscleral pathway.
It’s important to lower your high eye pressure caused by glaucoma by using Alphagan® 3 times a day as prescribed by your doctor
- Use your eye drops at the same time every day (or as your doctor recommends).
- Keep your eye drops in the same place so you always know where they are.
- Set alarms and reminders on clocks, cell phones, and computers to help you.
- Draw an “X” through each day of your calendar after you use your eye drops.
- Add using your eye drops to other daily routines such as brushing your teeth before bed.
- Ask a friend or family member to help you remember. Each day, they can ask, “Did you remember to put your eye drops in today?”
- Put a reminder note to yourself in a prominent location, such as on your refrigerator.
