Timolol
Timolol is a beta-blocker eye drop that lowers pressure inside the eye in glaucoma and ocular hypertension, sold as Timoptic 0.5% and in the combination bottles Combigan and Cosopt.
Why a beta-blocker helps an eye
Timolol is a beta-blocker, but for the eye it comes as a drop rather than a tablet. It blocks beta receptors in the ciliary body, the ring of tissue behind the iris that makes the watery aqueous humour filling the front of the eye. Less fluid means lower pressure inside the eye.
That matters in open-angle glaucoma, where the drainage angle clears fluid too slowly and the raised pressure gradually damages the optic nerve, and in ocular hypertension, where pressure is high but the nerve is still undamaged. Early on neither hurts or changes your sight, so the drops carry on long term; feeling fine is no reason to stop.
Timoptic on its own, Combigan and Cosopt with a partner
Timoptic is timolol alone, a 0.5% bottle. When one drop has not brought the pressure low enough, or one bottle is preferred to two, the answer is a combination. Combigan pairs timolol with brimonidine tartrate, 0.2/0.5%; brimonidine also reduces fluid production and helps fluid drain from the eye. Cosopt pairs it with dorzolamide, 2/0.5%, a carbonic anhydrase inhibitor that cuts fluid production by a different route. Read the figures as partner first, timolol second. All three are in the Eye Care range.
Putting the drops in
Twice a day, about twelve hours apart, is the usual pattern for Timoptic and both combination drops. Expect a brief sting and a few minutes of blur. Afterwards press a finger on the inner corner of the eye, beside the nose, for about a minute: more of the drop stays on the eye and less runs down the tear duct to the throat. That runoff is where the bitter taste comes from, and it is also how a little timolol reaches the bloodstream. A second eye drop goes in five minutes later.
Side effects and warning signs
Red, gritty or dry eyes, headache and tiredness are the usual complaints. Some of every drop reaches the bloodstream, so timolol can slow the pulse. It is not used where asthma or COPD brings wheezing, or with a very slow heart rhythm, and beta-blocker tablets such as atenolol, bisoprolol and propranolol, or heart-rate medicines like verapamil and diltiazem, add to its effects.
A red eye with severe pain, blurred vision, headache, nausea and halos around lights is an attack of angle-closure glaucoma, and an emergency. So is swelling of the lips, face or throat after a drop.
Sources
- Timolol Ophthalmic: MedlinePlus Drug Information — National Library of Medicine
- TIMOPTIC timolol maleate ophthalmic solution label — DailyMed
Where can I buy Timolol in Hong Kong?
How much do Timolol products cost in Hong Kong?
Each of the three timolol products has its own price per pack, shown on its page in HKD or your selected currency; larger packs usually cost less per unit.
Do I need a prescription to order Timolol?
PockDose does not ask you to upload a prescription when you order timolol. See the ordering FAQ for details.
What are the brand names for timolol?
Timoptic is a brand name of timolol, which is also sold as Timoptol. Here, timolol can be bought online as generic Timoptic. These are generics, not the original brand.
Can I wear contact lenses with timolol eye drops?
Soft contact lenses come out before the drop goes in and can go back in about fifteen minutes later, so the medicine is absorbed instead of being held against the eye under the lens. That timing is the same for Timoptic, Combigan and Cosopt.
Is Timoptic the same as timolol?
Timoptic is one brand of timolol eye drops, sold here as a 0.5% bottle. Combigan and Cosopt contain timolol too, but each adds a second pressure-lowering medicine, so they are not simply other names for the same bottle.
Can I use timolol with other eye drops?
Yes, one after the other. Wait five minutes between bottles so the second drop does not rinse the first away, and press the inner corner of the eye for a minute after the timolol.