A pilot study published in Veterinary Ophthalmology evaluated whether adding 0.2% hyaluronic acid (HA) to standard treatment could improve healing of superficial corneal ulcers in dogs. While hyaluronic acid is widely used in veterinary ophthalmology because of its lubricating and wound-supporting properties, evidence in canine patients has been limited.
The study involved six healthy Beagle dogs. Researchers created standardized superficial corneal epithelial defects and randomly assigned the dogs to receive either:
- A topical ophthalmic solution containing 0.2% hyaluronic acid
- A control solution with similar viscosity but without hyaluronic acid
Both groups received standard ulcer treatment, including topical antibiotics and supportive care. Corneal healing was monitored through regular ophthalmic examinations, fluorescein staining, photography, and measurement of wound closure over time.
The study found that topical hyaluronic acid was safe and well tolerated, but it did not significantly improve healing compared with the viscosity-matched control treatment.
Researchers observed:
- No significant difference in the rate of corneal re-epithelialization between groups
- No significant difference in clinical eye examination scores
- No measurable difference in tear matrix metalloproteinase (MMP-2 and MMP-9) activity, proteins involved in tissue remodeling during healing
- Complete healing occurred within a similar timeframe in both treatment groups
The authors concluded that adding 0.2% hyaluronic acid to standard ulcer therapy did not accelerate healing of superficial corneal wounds when compared with a control product that had similar lubricating properties.
Importantly, the study suggests that some benefits commonly attributed to hyaluronic acid may actually be related to the general protective and moisturizing effects of ophthalmic lubricants rather than the HA molecule alone.
This study evaluated standard (non-cross-linked) hyaluronic acid, which differs from the cross-linked hyaluronic acid technology used in BioHAnce™. Cross-linking alters the molecular structure of HA, increasing its residence time on the ocular surface and improving its ability to form a protective coating over damaged tissue.
Interestingly, the authors specifically noted that previous research on cross-linked hyaluronic acid had shown more promising results in corneal wound healing and suggested that future studies should directly compare cross-linked and non-cross-linked formulations. This distinction is important because the therapeutic performance of ophthalmic HA products may depend not only on the presence of hyaluronic acid but also on how the molecule is engineered.
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