Transitory models of experimentally induced intraocular pressure changes in the rabbit

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between inducer dosage, animal weight, and kinetics in intraocular pressure (IOP) changes in three transitory-induced models for antiglaucoma drugs screening: oral water-loading, 5% glucose intravenous administration, and 20% NaCl infusion. For these models, a dose-dependent elevation of IOP was observed in three weight groups of rabbits (1, 2.2, and 3.8 kg). Dose-effect relationships were established, considering for each weight group two relevant parameters: maximal IOP changes and areas under or upper the kinetic curves of IOP changes. Among the three models studied, our results led us to consider water-loading as a weight-independent model, allowing us to compare results obtained by this model in New Zealand rabbits with different ages (40–150 days) or weights (0.9–3.8 kg).