Oral minocycline appears beneficial in meibomian gland dysfunction

This prospective study found that oral minocycline can reduce inflammatory cytokine levels in moderate and severe meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD).

Subjects were 60 patients with stage 3 or 4 MGD. They were evaluated before and after one and two months of treatment with oral minocycline (50 mg twice-daily) and artificial tears or artificial tears only.

After two months, patients treated with minocycline showed significant improvement in all MGD signs and symptoms and more improvement than patients treated with artificial tears only. Minocycline-treated patients also showed significant reductions in IL-6, IL-1β, IL-17α, tumor necrosis factor-α, and IL-12p70 after two months of treatment.

Two patients reported gastrointestinal trouble after using oral minocycline but the effects were not severe and disappeared after discontinuation of treatment.

The authors conclude that tear cytokine measurement and MGD stage assessment can be an additional novel approach in evaluating the efficacy of anti-inflammatory treatment in MGD patients.