Purpose: To investigate the standards for using accommodative cycloplegic eye drops and their side effects in children aged 15 years or under.
Methods: A paper-based questionnaire was sent to 178 institutions in which staff members included either the directors of the Japanese Association of Strabismus and Amblyopia (JASA) or JASA-listed ophthalmologists whose subspecialties included strabismus and amblyopia.
Results: The questionnaire response rate was 65.2% (116/178). The rates of atropine sulfate was 86.2% and of cyclopentolate hydrochloride, 96.6%. Atropine was instilled twice a day for 7 days, and concentration levels of 0.50% or 1.00% and 1.00% only were used in 72.0% of the institutions using atropine. In most institutions, cyclopentolate hydrochloride was instilled twice with a 5-minute interval and refraction was tested 60 minutes after instillation. Side effects of atropine sulfate including mainly fever and flush were observed in 84.5% (98/116), and side effects of cyclopentolate hydrochloride including drowsiness and hallucination were observed in 55.2% (64/116) of the institutions.
Conclusions: The rates of atropine sulfate and cyclopentolate hydrochloride use were both high. Although more institutions had experienced side effects with atropine sulfate, more than half of the institutions experienced side effects with cyclopentolate hydrochloride.
Nippon Ganka Gakkai Zasshi (J Jpn Ophthalmol Soc) 121:529-534, 2017.