Remedial agent for optic nerve disease and the like

Abstract

The medicament for therapeutic and/or prophylactic treatment of the present invention has a suppressing action on the retinal degeneration induced by transient retinal ischemia, which is verified by the results for suppressing effect on retinal degeneration in transient retinal ischemia eye. Therefore, the medicament of the present invention has a therapeutic and/or prophylactic effectiveness on diseases in optic nerve and the like.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A medicament for therapeutic and/or prophylactic treatment of the disease in optic nerve, which comprises a hydroxy radical-scavenging agent as an active ingredient.  
     
     
         2 . A medicament comprising a hydroxy radical-scavenging agent as an active ingredient which is used for therapeutic and/or prophylactic treatment of a) a retinal circulatory disorder caused by retinal vein occlusion and the like, b) a retinal circulatory disorder caused by retinal artery occlusion and the like, c) a retinal disorder caused by surgery, trauma and the like, d) a retinal disorder caused by virus, bacteria, fungi and the like, e) a macular disease such as age-related macular degeneration, f) a retinal degenerative disease such as retinitis pigmentosa, g) retinal detachment, and h) a retinal disorder caused by drugs toxic to the retina such as phenothiazine.  
     
     
         3 . The medicament for therapeutic and/or prophylactic treatment according to  claim 1  or  2 , wherein the hydroxy radical-scavenging agent is 3-methyl-1-phenyl-2-pyrazolin-5-one or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof.  
     
     
         4 . The medicament for therapeutic and/or prophylactic treatment according to any one of  claims 1  to  3 , which is any one of an oral formulation, an injection, an eye drop, an ointment, or a sustained-release preparation to be left under the eyelid.  
     
     
         5 . The medicament for therapeutic and/or prophylactic treatment according to any of  claim 1 ,  3 , or  4 , wherein the disease in optic nerve is any one of a) an inflammatory disease such as optic neuritis, b) a disease caused by a circulatory disorder such as ischemic optic neuropathy, c) an optic nerve disorder caused by compression of the optic nerve due to a surgery, trauma, tumor and the like, or due to edema and the like, d) an optic nerve toxic disease caused by ethambutol, alcohol and the like, e) an optic nerve disorder caused by a refractive surgery, and f) glaucoma.