Systemic corticosteroids in the treatment of traumatic hyphema.

As a result of Yasuna's 1974 report on the desirable effect of systemic steroids on the rebleeding rate in traumatic hyphema, we added systemic steroids to our treatment protocol. In the 18 cases so treated since then, there has been only one episode of rebleeding (5.5%). A control group of 33 patients treated prior to the addition of systemic steroids to the protocol, or by other physicians not using steroids, had a rebleed rate of 33%. The difference in rebleed rate between the two groups was statistically significant.