Abstract
Purpose :
Dry Eye Disease (DED) in diabetes mellitus (DM) is common. Although, there have been no studies published that evaluate the awareness of DED in DM in the practices of eye care professionals in different regions. In this study, the clinical practice behaviours of eye care professionals based in the UK and Mongolia were compared, with respect to the diagnosis and management of DED in DM.
Methods :
An online survey was sent to eye care professionals in the 2 countries (UK and Mongolia). Respondents provided information about practice modality, preferred diagnosis and management of DED in DM.
Results :
Only the completed responses (128 from the UK and 68 from Mongolia) were analysed. In the clinical experience of respondents, the mean prevalence of DED in patients with DM was reported as 61.6% (±21.1) and 57.2% (±21.7) in the UK and Mongolia, respectively. In addition, the mean prevalence of asymptomatic DED in DM was reported as 50.5% (±19) and 48.6% (±18) in the UK and Mongolia, respectively. When comparing the reported prevalence, there were no statistical significant differences detected between the countries (p>0.05). A significant higher proportion (p<0.001) of UK respondents (57.8%; n=74) than Mongolia-based respondents (35.3%; n=24) agreed that the prevalence of DED in DM was higher than those without DM. The majority of UK (71.9%) and Mongolian respondents (61.8%) saw between 1-5 DM patients with DED per week. Both countries reported that DED in DM was diagnosed with the same clinical tests as DED without DM. For DED treatment, respondents mainly prescribed artificial tear supplements (69.4% in the UK; 90% in Mongolia), followed by warm compress and lid scrubs (19.4% in the UK and 6.7% in Mongolia). Half of respondents from both countries agreed that DED in DM receives less attention than diabetic retinal complications during ophthalmic examinations. In addition, they agreed that there needs to be increase in practitioners’ awareness of DED in DM. Undergraduate and postgraduate studies were acknowledged as the main source of information for DED in DM among UK and Mongolian respondents, respectively (see Figure 1).
Conclusions :
Eye care professionals in both regions had similar practice behaviours for diagnosing and treating DED in DM. According to the responses from the UK and Mongolia, DED was considered as being prevalent in DM.
This is a 2021 ARVO Annual Meeting abstract.