[Evaluation of therapeutic effect of new Russian drug semax in optic nerve disease].

Semax is a synthetic analog of adrenocorticotropic hormone 4-10 with a pronounced nootropic effect. It was used in the treatment of vascular, toxic allergic, and inflammatory diseases of the optic nerve and partial atrophy of the optic nerve in parallel with basic neurotrophic and antiinflammatory therapy. For evaluating the drug efficiency, the patients were divided into 3 groups, administered the drug via different routes. In group 1 semax was administered intransally as nasal drops, in group 2 by endonasal electrophoresis, and group 3 was control. Addition of semax to therapeutic complex in patients with diseases of the optic nerve had a favorable impact on the intensity and rate of recovery and improved the visual functions. Semax effectively protected nervous tissue from aftereffects of injury, particularly during the acute stage of optic nerve disease: it stimulated positive changes in the clinical picture, which were evaluated by improvement of visual acuity, extension of the total visual field, increase in the electric sensitivity and conductivity of the optic nerve, and improvement of color vision.