Effects of French maritime pine bark/bilberry fruit extracts on intraocular pressure for primary open-angle glaucoma

Kaoru Manabe; Sachiko Kaidzu; Aika Tsutsui; Mihoko Mochiji; Yotaro Matsuoka; Yasutaka Takagi; Etsuyo Miyamoto; Masaki Tanito

doi:10.3164/jcbn.20-50

Effects of French maritime pine bark/bilberry fruit extracts on intraocular pressure for primary open-angle glaucoma

J Clin Biochem Nutr. 2021 Jan;68(1):67-72. doi: 10.3164/jcbn.20-50. Epub 2020 Jul 10.

Authors

Kaoru Manabe¹, Sachiko Kaidzu¹, Aika Tsutsui¹, Mihoko Mochiji¹, Yotaro Matsuoka², Yasutaka Takagi³, Etsuyo Miyamoto³, Masaki Tanito¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Ophthalmology, Shimane University Faculty of Medicine, 89-1 Enya, Izumo, Shimane 693-8501 Japan.
² Division of Ophthalmology, Matsue Red Cross Hospital, Matsue, Shimane 690-8506, Japan.
³ Santen Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Osaka 530-8552, Japan.

Abstract

We tested oral French maritime pine bark (40 mg)/bilberry fruit extract (90 mg) supplements for intraocular pressure-lowering effects in Japanese subjects with primary open-angle glaucoma. Eighteen subjects (29 eyes) were recruited with intraocular pressure of ≥15 mmHg who used one to three bottles of antiglaucoma medications. After a 2-week observation (period 1), subjects ingested a tablet/day of Sante^® Glagenox for 4 weeks (period 2). The mean intraocular pressure (17.2 ± 2.3 mmHg) decreased significantly to 15.7 ± 1.9 mmHg (8.7% reduction) at week 4 (p = 0.0046). The mean morning intraocular pressure (14.1 ± 3.1 mmHg) self-measured using the iCare HOME tonometer during period 1 decreased significantly to 13.3 ± 2.9 mmHg (5.7% reduction) during period 2 (p = 0.0291). Blood redox parameters, diacron reactive oxygen metabolites, biologic antioxidant potential, and sulfhydryl tests were unchanged after 4-week supplementation. Intra-subject comparisons, compared to period 1, showed pooled, self-measured, period-2 intraocular pressures was significantly lower in nine subjects (50%), unchanged in six subjects (33%), and elevated in three subjects (17%), suggesting some non-responders. Four-week supplementation with French maritime pine bark/bilberry fruit extracts can further reduce intraocular pressure even in Japanese patients with controlled primary open-angle glaucoma. Further study should confirm the intraocular pressure-lowering effects and mechanisms of this supplement in glaucoma management. The study was registered in UMIN (ID: UMIN000033200).

Keywords: Mirtoselect®; Pycnogenol®; anthocyanin; biological antioxidant potential (BAP) test; diacron reactive oxygen metabolites (dROM) test; procyanidin; sulfhydryl (SH) test.