Abstract
Purpose :
The purpose of this study is to analyze the association of dry eye (DE) and treatment outcomes among patients with ocular pain and dysesthesias who visited university hospital in the past three years.
Methods :
We conducted a retrospective analysis of 58 patients (18 males and 40 females, average age of 61.4 years), who had difficulty with treatment given for ocular pain and dysesthesias between August 2020 and December 2022. We focused on the presence or absence of DE and the details of the treatment. The diagnostic criteria for DE were as follows: (1) presence of dry eye–related ocular symptoms and (2) abnormal tear film stability determined by fluorescein tear film break-up time (BUT) ≤ 5 seconds). All patients were questioned regarding the presence or absence of subjective ocular symptoms. Fluorescein dye was used to assess ocular staining and BUT. The 5-minute Schirmer's test using sterile strips without anesthesia was performed as one of the factors related to DE. Analysis was based on each eye.
Results :
Among the 58 patients, 33 were supposed to be suffering from DE symptoms by judging from their chief complaints, and BUT measurement and Schirmer's test were conducted on them. Ocular pain and dysesthesias were presented in 58 eyes among the 33 patients. Among the 58 eyes, 15 eyes (25.9%) showed decreased values in both BUT and Schirmer's test, 21 (36.2%) showed a decreased value only in BUT, and 8 (13.8%) showed a decreased value only in Schirmer's test. Out of the 58 eyes, 36 met the diagnostic criteria for DE.
Among the 44 eyes with decreased BUT and/or Schirmer's test values, 39 eyes received additional DE treatment at our hospital. Out of the 39, 18 eyes (46.2%) showed improvement in ocular pain and dysesthesias. Nine eyes (23.1%) showed no change in symptoms, and the outcome was unknown in the remaining. Out of the 18 eyes with improved symptoms, only 6 eyes (33.3%) received DE treatment alone. The remaining 12 eyes received other concurrent treatments, including meibomian gland dysfunction (22.2%), asthenopia (16.7%), blepharitis (11.1%), and neuropathic pain (11.1%) treatments.
Conclusions :
This analysis revealed that while ocular pain and dysesthesias are often associated with DE, only a few cases showed improvement with DE treatment alone. This suggests that ocular pain and dysesthesias are caused by a combination of factors.
This abstract was presented at the 2024 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Seattle, WA, May 5-9, 2024.