Triamcinolone for the Treatment of Graves Ophthalmopathy Tested With Short Tau Inversion Recovery Magnetic Resonance

PURPOSE: To evaluate if parabulbar triamcinolone reduces orbital swelling in patients with Graves ophthalmopathy. METHODS: This is a prospective study of a series of patients with active and moderate Graves ophthalmopathy. Short tau inversion recovery magnetic resonance was used to evaluate the intensity of the extraocular rectus muscles and orbital fat, before and after the treatment with parabulbar triamcinolone. RESULTS: The signal intensity ratio of the sum of the OD rectus muscles was 3.67 before treatment (95% CI, 3.26-4.09) and 2.83 after treatment (95% CI, 2.63-3.03) (p < 0.001), and of the muscles of the left orbit, 3.94 before treatment (95% CI, 3.50-4.38) and 2.85 after treatment (95% CI, 2.56-3.14) (p < 0.001). The signal intensity ratio of the fat decreased from 2.95 (95% CI, 2.69-3.21) to 2.33 (95% CI, 2.07-2.58) (p < 0.001). After treatment, there were no local or systemic complications. CONCLUSION: The use of parabulbar triamcinolone reduces orbital inflammation of patients with active and moderate Graves ophthalmopathy.