Treatment of mild to moderate Graves' ophthalmopathy with sodium diclofenac: a pilot study.

Objective: To report the use of sodium diclofenac, an antagonist of PPAR-gamma and cyclooxigenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor in the treatment of mild to moderate Graves' ophthalmopathy.

Subjects And Methods: Thirteen patients with clinical activity score (CAS) 2 to 7 were treated during a period ranging from 3 to 12 months (mean 7.8 ± 3.

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma gene expression in orbital adipose/connective tissues is increased during the active stage of Graves' ophthalmopathy.

The mechanisms involved in the increase of orbital retro-ocular adipose tissue that occurs in Graves' ophthalmopathy (GO) are still unclear. In this condition, the orbital tissue shows glycosaminoglycans deposition produced by activated fibroblasts capable of undergoing adipocytic differentiation. Many genes are involved in adipogenic mechanisms including the transcription factor peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-gamma).