Topical indomethacin in the treatment of chronic cystoid macular edema.

Eighty percent of 30 eyes with chronic cystoid macular edema (CME) after cataract extraction achieved improved visual acuity of three or more lines when treated with 1% indomethacin eye drops. Of these patients 53% demonstrated an "on/off" phenomenon induced by the initiation and cessation of treatment documented by visual acuity measurements and fluorescein angiography. This "on/off" phenomenon suggests that there is a direct relationship between the use of 1% indomethacin eye drops and the resolution of chronic CME after cataract extraction. Previous studies on the treatment of CME with indomethacin have not addressed the use of indomethacin eye drops for chronic CME.