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Memantine administration in patients with optic neuritis: a double blind randomized clinical trial

  • Neurophthalmology
  • Published:
Graefe's Archive for Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Introduction

As an inflammatory phenomenon, optic neuritis (ON) that causes demyelination in the optic nerve damages the retinal cells, and leads to visual impairment. Herein, we aimed to investigate the potential therapeutic effects of memantine on ON.

Methods

In this double-blinded randomized clinical trial, participants with the first episode of acute ON meeting the inclusion criteria were enrolled and were randomly divided into memantine group (MG; N = 20) and placebo group (PG; N = 18). Patients of MG received memantine for 6 weeks. The thickness of the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL), visual evoked potential (VEP), and visual acuity (VA) was measured in both groups at baseline and 3-month follow-up.

Results

Thirty-eight patients with ON were enrolled. In the follow-up, mean RNFL thickness of both groups significantly decreased in all quadrants (P < 0.001). Also, RNFL thickness of all but temporal quadrants were significantly higher in the MG than placebo. The reduction in RNFL thickness difference was insignificant between two groups in all but the inferior quadrant which was significantly lower in MG (P = 0.024). In follow-up, mean-to-peak of P100 of the affected eye were significantly lowered (P < 0.001). The changes in VEP were insignificant. Originally, the mean VA was 0.15 ± 0.08 and 0.17 ± 0.09 in MG and PG, respectively, but was improved significantly to 0.92 ± 0.06 and 0.91 ± 0.06 in MG and PG, respectively, in follow-up.

Conclusion

Memantine can reduce the RNFL thinning in three quadrants by blocking NMD receptors. However, visual acuity did not show a significant difference between the two groups.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Dina Motamedi, Mahsa Mayeli, Mahan Shafie & Reza Sattarpour

  2. Iranian Center of Neurological Research, Neuroscience Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Dina Motamedi, Mahsa Mayeli, Mahan Shafie & Reza Sattarpour

  3. NeuroTRACT Association, Students’ Scientific Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Dina Motamedi, Mahsa Mayeli, Mahan Shafie & Reza Sattarpour

  4. Department of Neurology, Imam Khomeini Hospital Complex, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Mahsa Mayeli, Mahan Shafie & Payam Sarraf

  5. Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Maryam Rashidi Jazani & Abbas Tafakhori

Authors
  1. Dina Motamedi
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  2. Mahsa Mayeli
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  3. Mahan Shafie
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  4. Reza Sattarpour
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  5. Maryam Rashidi Jazani
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  6. Abbas Tafakhori
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  7. Payam Sarraf
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by Dina Motamedi, Mahsa Mayeli, Mahan Shafie, Reza Sattarpour, Maryam Rashidi Jazani, Abbas Tafakhori and Payam Sarraf. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Mahsa Mayeli and Mahan Shafie and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Payam Sarraf.

Ethics declarations

Research involving human participants and/or animals

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the Tehran University of Medical Sciences and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed consent

Written informed consent was obtained from all participants for research purposes.

Conflict of interest

All authors certify that they have no affiliations with or involvement in any organization or entity with any financial interest (such as honoraria; educational grants; participation in speakers’ bureaus; membership, employment, consultancies, stock ownership, or other equity interest; and expert testimony or patent-licensing arrangements), or non-financial interest (such as personal or professional relationships, affiliations, knowledge or beliefs) in the subject matter or materials discussed in this manuscript.

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Motamedi, D., Mayeli, M., Shafie, M. et al. Memantine administration in patients with optic neuritis: a double blind randomized clinical trial. Graefes Arch Clin Exp Ophthalmol 260, 3969–3975 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00417-022-05720-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00417-022-05720-8

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