Objective 　To evaluate the efficacy of treatment of thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy with retrobular injection of glucocorticoid.
Methods 　We searched The Cochrane Library (Issue 1, 2010), EBM Reviews, PubMed and CBMdisc to collect randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of retrobular injection of glucocorticoid for thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy. The quality of the included trials was assessed and meta-analyses were conducted by RevMan 4.2.8 software. We conducted subgroup analyses based on the outcome measures and intervention.
Results 　A total of 7 RCTs were identified. There were significant differences between retrobular injection of glucocorticoid and blank in the effective rate (RR= 1.35, 95%CI 1.10 to 1.65, P=0.004). There were no significant differences between retrobular injection of glucocorticoid and oral glucocorticoid in the effective rate (RR= 1.15, 95%CI 0.93 to 1.42, P=0.20). And there were significant differences between retrobular injection of glucocorticoid alone and retrobular injection of glucocorticoid combined with radiotheraphy in the effective rate (RR= 0.85, 95%CI 0.72 to 1.00, P=0.04). Three patients of the ROGC experienced intraorbital hemorrhage and two of the ROGC experienced aggravation of soft tissues. There were no systemic adverse reactions such as weight gaining and Cushing’s syndrome.
Conclusion 　Retrobular injection of glucocorticoid appears to be an effective treatment for thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy. And combination retrobular injection of glucocorticoid with radiotheraphy seems to be more effective.

Citation： QI Dongmei,HE Weimin. Treatment for Thyroid-associated Ophthalmopathy with Retrobular Injection of Glucocorticoid: A Meta-analysis. Chinese Journal of Evidence-Based Medicine, 2010, 10(6): 678-682. doi: 10.7507/1672-2531.20100475 Copy