The Diagnosis and Characteristics of Moderate Dry Eye in Non-Contact Lens Wearers

Appropriateness of Questionnaires for the Diagnosis and Monitoring Treatment of Dry Eye Disease

Objectives: If questionnaires contributing to the diagnosis of dry eye disease are to be recommended as alternatives to existing questionnaires, they must be comparable, with similar repeatability and treatment sensitivity. Comparability was thus examined for three common dry eye questionnaires along with identifying the individual questions that most strongly predicted overall scores. Methods: Anonymised data (n = 329) collected via the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI), 5-item Dry Eye Questionnaire (DEQ-5) and Symptom Assessment in Dry Eye (SANDE) questionnaires (including responses to individual questions) from consenting patients were drawn from real-world dry eye clinics/registries in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand; at follow-up, normalised changes were evaluated in 54 of these patients. Treatment data were also analysed from a 6-month, randomised controlled trial assessing artificial tear supplement treatments with 43 responders and 13 non-responders to treatment identified. The questions extracted from the OSDI which form the abbreviated 6-item OSDI were also analysed. Results: The agreement between the questionnaires ranged from r = 0.577 to 0.754 (all p < 0.001). For the OSDI, three questions accounted for 89.1% of the variability in the total score. The correlation between the OSDI and OSDI-6 was r = 0.939, p < 0.001. For the DEQ-5, two questions accounted for 88.5% of the variance in the total score. Normalised treatment changes were also only moderately correlated between the questionnaires (r = 0.441 to 0.595, p < 0.01). For non-responders, variability was 7.4% with both OSDI and OSDI-6, 9.7% with DEQ-5, 12.1% with SANDE-frequency and 11.9% with SANDE-severity scale. For responders, improvement with drops was detected with a 19.1% change in OSDI, 20.2% in OSDI-6, 20.9% in DEQ-5, and 27.5%/23.6% in SANDE-frequency/severity scales. Conclusions: Existing commonly used dry eye questionnaire scores do not show high levels of correlation. The OSDI was the least variable of the questionnaires and while displaying a slightly lower treatment effect than either the DEQ or SANDE, it was more sensitive to detection of a treatment effect. The quicker-to-complete OSDI-6 exhibited essentially the same outcome as the OSDI, with similar variability and treatment sensitivity.

Spanish Cross-Cultural Adaptation, Rasch Analysis and Validation of the Ocular Comfort Index (OCI) Questionnaire

The Ocular Comfort Index (OCI) assesses ocular surface irritation and grades the severity of dry eye disease. This study sought to adapt the OCI questionnaire into Spanish, and then to assess the psychometric performance and validity of the new adapted version (OCI-versión española, OCI_VE). The questionnaire was translated, back translated, and then cross-culturally adapted for use with Spanish-speaking individuals. The OCI_VE was completed by 450 participants, including 53 subjects that were diagnosed with dry eye disease. Through a Rasch analysis, the psychometric properties of item fit, targeting, person separation, reliability, and differential item functioning (DIF) were assessed. To test the convergent validity, we examined the correlation between the OCI_VE and the Computer Vision Symptom Scale (CVSS17). Validity was tested in a subgroup of participants with and without dry eye, and test-retest repeatability was determined in a subset of 151 individuals. We also compared, via DIF, the performance of the OCI_VE with that of the original OCI. Our Rasch analysis revealed a good model fit, high accuracy, good targeting, unidimensionality, and no DIF according to gender. The validity and repeatability were good. The OCI_VE shows comparable psychometric properties to the original English version, making it a valid tool for measuring dry eye symptoms in Spanish adults.

A Review of Dry Eye Questionnaires: Measuring Patient-Reported Outcomes and Health-Related Quality of Life

Dry eye disease (DED) is among the most common eye diseases and is becoming increasingly prevalent. Its symptoms cause a long-term decline in patients’ health-related quality of life (HRQL). Inconsistencies often occur between the clinical findings and the subjective symptoms of DED. Therefore, a holistic, balanced, and quantitative evaluation of the subjective symptoms and HRQL using patient-reported outcome questionnaires, in addition to clinical findings, is crucial for accurate DED assessment in patients. This paper reviewed the characteristics of current dry eye questionnaires, including their objectives, number of questions, inclusion of HRQL-related items, and whether they were properly evaluated for psychometric properties. Twenty-four questionnaires were identified; among them, the following six questionnaires that included items assessing HRQL and were properly evaluated for psychometric properties are recommended: the Ocular Surface Disease Index, Impact of Dry Eye in Everyday Life, Dry Eye-Related Quality-of-life Score, University of North Carolina Dry Eye Management Scale, Chinese version of Dry Eye-Related Quality of Life, and 25-Item National Eye Institute Visual Function Questionnaire. Dry eye questionnaires have different objectives and are available in different languages. Therefore, medical practitioners should confirm the characteristics of applicable questionnaires before selecting the most appropriate ones.

Geographic distribution of corneal staining in symptomatic dry eye

PURPOSE

To describe the geographic distribution of corneal fluorescein staining across the five corneal zones, among non contact lens wearers who report symptoms of dry eye and determine which corneal zone most frequently exhibited the worst staining.

METHODS

Prior studies conducted at the Centre for Ocular Research & Education, Canada, were reviewed for inclusion in the analysis. Each study assessed dry eye symptoms using OSDI and also assessed corneal fluorescein staining in five corneal zones. For each subject, the corneal zones were ranked 1-5 according to their relative staining grade, Rank-1 representing the highest grade.

RESULTS

Data from 13 studies and 368 subjects were included. The total number of zones assigned Rank-1 (worst) staining was 449 (across 264 subjects). The inferior zone had the most Rank-1 counts of all zones at 193/43%, which involved 52.5% of all subjects. The nasal zone had 77/17% involving 20.9% of subjects, followed by the temporal (69/15.5%, 18.8% subjects) and superior zones (63/14%, 17.1% subjects). The central zone had the lowest count of Rank-1 designations, at only 47/10.5%, involving 12.8% of subjects. Bayesian analysis was used to generate distributions of the credible proportions of subjects likely to present with staining in a single peripheral zone, with or without central zone staining. It illustrated that staining in a peripheral zone without central staining was more credible. The worst single zone staining was most likely to present in the inferior zone (67.9%), followed by the nasal zone (11.3%), the superior zone (9.2%), and the temporal zone (5.6%).

CONCLUSION

In the presence of dry eye symptoms, the inferior zone typically presents the most severe grade of corneal staining, more likely without central zone staining. This knowledge is valuable when developing a strategy to treat dry eye signs, as the inferior corneal zone has the highest grade of staining thus has the potential to exhibit the greatest reduction in staining post-treatment.

Lid-Parallel Conjunctival Folds and Their Ability to Predict Dry Eye

PURPOSE

The observation of lid-parallel conjunctival folds (LIPCOF) is reported to be useful in dry eye diagnoses. Around 70% of the European clinicians use this test in a dry eye clinic. This study investigated the sensitivity and specificity of LIPCOF to predict dry eye.

METHODS

Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) outcome, noninvasive break-up time (NIKBUT) using the Keratograph (Oculus, Wetzlar, Germany), and LIPCOF of 148 randomized selected patient reports (88 females; mean age=37.0±12.9 years) from 3 different sites were analyzed. Subjects were divided into dry eye and non-dry eye groups by OSDI only, named symptomatic dry eye (OSDI scores ≥15) and by a composite score (OSDI scores ≥15 and NIKBUTaverage of ≤9 sec).

RESULTS

Lid-parallel conjunctival folds (temporal, nasal, Sum [=temporal+nasal]) were significantly correlated to OSDI and to NIKBUTaverage (Spearman; r>-0.185, P<0.013). NIKBUTaverage (r=-0.322; P<0.001) was significantly correlated to OSDI scores. Based on the OSDI questionnaire, 37.2% of the subjects were symptomatic and 14.7% were positive for dry eye based on the composite score. Lid-parallel conjunctival folds were a significant discriminator between healthy and dry eye subjects (P≤0.001). The areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve for temporal LIPCOF, nasal LIPCOF, and LIPCOF Sum were 0.716, 0.737, and 0.771, respectively, for the symptomatic dry eye group and 0.771, 0.719, and 0.798, respectively, for the composite dry eye group.

CONCLUSIONS

As LIPCOF demonstrated high predictive ability of dry eye; it appears to be a promising test in the diagnoses of dry eye.

A measure of tear inflow in habitual scleral lens wearers with and without midday fogging

PURPOSE

The purpose of this pilot study was to evaluate tear inflow in a scleral lens system using fluorophotometry, and indirectly assess the exchange of the tear reservoir in habitual scleral lens wearers with the presence or absence of midday fogging (MDF).

METHODS

Habitual scleral lens wearers (n=23) and normal scleral lens neophytes (n=10) were recruited. Of the 23 habitual wearers, 11 of them experienced MDF and 12 did not have a diagnosis of MDF. Contact lens-fitting characteristics were evaluated using ocular coherence tomograpy (OCT) and biomicroscopy. High molecular weight fluorescein (FITC) Dextran was instilled into the tear reservoir beneath the scleral lens, and the tear fluid fluorescein concentration was measured using the Fluorotron fluorophotometer. Calculated fluorescein concentrations were plotted over time to measure the fluorescein decay rate of the tear fluid beneath the scleral lens, which was used to calculate the tear exchange rate.

RESULTS

There was no significant difference in tear inflow between the MDF group (mean: 0.111%) and the non-MDF group (mean: 0.417%), and there was a high amount of variability seen in the rates (p = 0.26). In addition, there was no significance between the tear reservoir thickness in the MDF (283um) and non-MDF (326um) groups (p = 0.53).

CONCLUSIONS

The relationship between the amount of tear exchange during scleral lens wear and the incidence of MDF was not significant. Additional studies are needed to further examine the role of tear exchange in MDF and address the causes of variability to improve measurement techniques with fluorophotometry in the scleral lens system.

Differences in Dry Eye Questionnaire Symptoms in Two Different Modalities of Contact Lens Wear: Silicone-Hydrogel in Daily Wear Basis and Overnight Orthokeratology

Purpose. To compare the ocular surface symptoms and signs in an adult population of silicone-hydrogel (Si-Hy) contact lens (CL) wearers with another modality of CL wear, overnight orthokeratology (OK). Materials and Methods. This was a prospective and comparative study in which 31 myopic subjects were fitted with the same Si-Hy CL and 23 underwent OK treatment for 3 months. Dry eye questionnaire (DEQ) was filled in at the beginning of the study and then after 15 days, 1 month, and 3 months using each CL modality. The tear quality was evaluated with noninvasive tear break-up time. Tear production was measured with Schirmer test. Tear samples were collected with Schirmer strips being frozen to analyze the dinucleotide diadenosine tetraphosphate (Ap₄A) concentration with High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). Results. After refitting with ortho-k, a reduction in discomfort and dryness symptoms at the end of the day (p < 0.05, χ²) was observed. No significant changes were observed in Ap₄A concentration in any group. Bulbar redness, limbal redness, and conjunctival staining increased significantly in the Si-Hy group (p < 0.05, Kruskal-Wallis test). Conclusion. Discomfort and dryness symptoms at the end of the day are lower in the OK CL group than in the Si-Hy CL group.

Prevalence of dry eye amongst black and Indian university students aged 18–30 years

Background: The overall prevalence of dry eye in South Africa seems to be increasing. University students work under conditions predisposing them to dry eye, which may affect some tasks. The predominant race groups at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) are black and Indian, which suggested a study in this student population to assist the diagnosis and management of such subjects.Aim and setting: To compare the prevalence of dry eye amongst black and Indian students at the UKZN’s Westville campus.Methods: One hundred participants, equally divided by gender and race, between 18 and 30 years old were enrolled. Dry eye symptoms were investigated by the ocular surface disease index (OSDI), tear thinning time (TTT), tear breakup time (TBUT) and Schirmer’s 2 in that sequence on both eyes of each participant.Results: The OSDI revealed that 41% of participants had some dry eye symptoms whilst 59% had no symptoms. Clinical testing showed that 81% of participants had dry eye. Half of the black participants had dry eye symptoms and 82% had clinical signs of dry eye. Of the 50 Indian participants, 32% had dry eye symptoms and 80% had clinical signs. Of the 50 male participants, 34% were symptomatic and 86% had clinical signs. Of the 50 female participants, 48% had dry eye symptoms and 76% had clinical signs. Participants were asymptomatic even in the presence of clinical dry eye signs.Conclusion: For both races and genders, clinical signs of dry eye were more common than symptoms. Black participants were more likely to report symptoms than Indians, and more women than men reported having symptoms. Male participants were more likely than female to have clinical signs of dry eye.

A review of quality of life measures in dry eye questionnaires

PURPOSE

Dry eye disease (DED) is an ocular disease that affects 5% to 17% of the US population. Because of the negative effects of DED on patients' quality of life (QOL), disease-specific questionnaires that assess QOL in patients with dry eyes are essential in the monitoring and management of this chronic ocular condition. This review provides clinicians and researchers with a summary of the current questionnaires available for assessing QOL in patients with dry eyes.

METHODS

A systematic review of the literature was performed in March 2013.

RESULTS

There are only 2 validated, reliable dry eye questionnaires with QOL measures currently available for clinic use: the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) and the Impact of Dry Eye on Everyday Life questionnaire (IDEEL). Multiple other dry eye questionnaires assess some degree of QOL, but they have either not been tested for validity and reliability or are limited in QOL measures they assess.

CONCLUSIONS

The OSDI and IDEEL are validated, reliable disease-specific questionnaires that assess QOL measures in patients with DED. Because of its extensive development process and multiple QOL measures, the IDEEL offers a more thorough assessment of the effect of DED on QOL for clinical trials, whereas the OSDI may be the more convenient option for clinical use as a result of its shorter completion time. Other questionnaires used to assess QOL in DED (eg, 25-item National Eye Institute Visual Function Questionnaire and Texas Eye Research and Technology Center DEQ) are fairly limited in this assessment. Finally, because of the negative effects of DED on QOL, this review emphasizes the importance of including QOL measures in future questionnaires for the monitoring and management of DED.

An update on dry eye disease molecular treatment: advances in drug pipelines

INTRODUCTION

Dry eye disease is a common disorder provoking changes in tear film and ocular surface. Untreated dry eye could cause ocular infections, corneal ulcer and blindness. Only a few drugs are authorized so far for the treatment of dry eye disease and the possibilities of evolution in this sector are immense. Consequently, a significant number of new potential solutions are under development or placed in the pharmaceutical pipeline, promising better results and lesser side effects.

AREAS COVERED

In this article, the corresponding literature and recent Phase III clinical trial data and the corresponding literature, for dry eye disease treatment are reviewed, revealing the new strategic movements in drug pipelines.

EXPERT OPINION

From the clinical trial results, the advancement in tear substitutes and secretagogues in addressing specific deficiencies of tear components even though not resolving the underlying conditions of the disease is evident. The vast majority of new compounds under development are anti-inflammatories, steroids, non-steroids and antibiotics; however, there are also some novel lubricating drops and mucin-tear secretagogues. A future aggressive therapy for dry eye, depending on the severity of the symptoms, would include combinations of soft steroids, anti-inflammatories, such as cyclosporine A, with the addition of the new polyvalent mucin and tear secretagogues.

Correlation of tear osmolarity and dry eye symptoms in convention attendees

PURPOSE

To assess the correlation between tear osmolarity readings and symptoms of dry eye in a nonclinical convenience sample and to determine how well symptoms and osmolarity correlate with the self-assessment of dry eye.

METHODS

Two hundred forty-nine attendees in the exhibit hall at an optometric educational meeting agreed to participate in a dry eye study. Contact lens wearers were excluded. Volunteers supplied demographic information and completed a 5-item Dry Eye Questionnaire (DEQ-5) and answered the question "Do you think you have dry eye" with a yes or no response. Osmolarity testing was done using the TearLab instrument on the right eye, then on the left eye. Pearson correlation analyses were performed to determine the relationship between variables.

RESULTS

There was no correlation between DEQ-5 scores and average tear osmolarity (correlation coefficient, 0.02) and highest osmolarity (correlation coefficient, 0.03). The mean DEQ-5 score was significantly higher among subjects who self-reported dry eye (mean, 11.3; p < 0.0001) compared with those who did not (mean, 5.4; p < 0.0001). No differences were observed between the yes and no self-reported dry eye groups and average osmolarity (p = 0.23) and highest osmolarity (p = 0.14).

CONCLUSIONS

In this nonclinical population, there was no significant correlation between tear osmolarity and ocular symptoms as reported or between tear osmolarity and the self-assessment of dry eye.

Dry eye disease and microbial keratitis: is there a connection?

Dry eye is a common ocular surface disease of multifactorial etiology characterized by elevated tear osmolality and inflammation leading to a disrupted ocular surface. The latter is a risk factor for ocular surface infection, yet overt infection is not commonly seen clinically in the typical dry eye patient. This suggests that important innate mechanisms operate to protect the dry eye from invading pathogens. This article reviews the current literature on epidemiology of ocular surface infection in dry eye patients and laboratory-based studies on innate immune mechanisms operating at the ocular surface and their alterations in human dry eye and animal models. The review highlights current understanding of innate immunity in dry eye and identifies gaps in our knowledge to help direct future studies to further unravel the complexities of dry eye disease and its sequelae.

Appraisal of patient-reported outcome instruments available for randomized clinical trials in dry eye: revisiting the standards

Clinical signs in dry eye (DE) often underestimate the severity of the condition, correlating poorly with symptoms and the impact on patients' health-related quality of life (HRQL). Patient-reported outcome (PRO) questionnaires are therefore essential to accurately evaluate the health status of DE patients and the severity of their condition. A comprehensive evaluation of HRQL in addition to clinical signs and visual function is necessary to fully characterize the impact of DE on patients' health. Growing interest in PRO measures and their implementation in clinical trials has resulted in more formal guidance on the design and properties of these instruments. To be scientifically sound and accepted by regulatory authorities, an instrument's development process and its appropriateness for use in the target population, its psychometric properties and responsiveness must be described. To address the recent health authority guidance, this review discusses the design, development methodology, and performance of currently available PRO instruments for DE.

The relationship between clinical signs and dry eye symptoms

PURPOSE

To evaluate (i) the relationship between traditional and new clinical tests (lid-wiper epitheliopathy (LWE), lid-parallel conjunctival folds (LIPCOF)) and dry eye symptoms in non-contact lens wearers, and (ii) that a combination of these tests can improve predictive ability for the development of dry eye symptoms.

METHODS

Tear meniscus height (TMH), non-invasive break-up time (NIBUT), ocular hyperaemia, LIPCOF, phenol red thread test (PRTT), corneal and conjunctival staining, and LWE grades were observed in a cohort of 47 healthy, non-lens wearers (male=17, female=30, median age=35 years, range=19-70). Symptoms were assessed using the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI).

RESULTS

LWE was significantly correlated to both temporal and nasal LIPCOF (0.537 -0.248, P < 0.001). Significant correlations were found between NIBUT and TMH (r=0.461, P=0.001) and PRTT (r = 0.640, P < 0.001). OSDI scores were significant correlated to NIBUT, TMH, PRTT, LIPCOF, and LWE (r>∣0.31∣; P<0.05). Significant discriminators of OSDI+/- were NIBUT (area under the receiver operative characteristic curve (AUC)=0.895), TMH (0.715), PRTT (0.781), LIPCOF (temporal/nasal/Sum 0.748/0.828/0.816), and LWE (0.749). Best predictive ability was achieved by combining NIBUT with nasal LIPCOF (AUC=0.944).

CONCLUSIONS

The individual tests NIBUT, TMH, PRTT, LIPCOF, and LWE were significantly, but moderately, related to OSDI scores. The strongest relationship appeared by combining NIBUT with nasal LIPCOF.

Advancements in anti-inflammatory therapy for dry eye syndrome

PURPOSE

The goal of this literature review is to discuss recent discoveries in the pathophysiology of dry eye and the subsequent evolution of diagnostic and management techniques. The mechanisms of various anti-inflammatory treatments are reviewed, and the efficacy of common pharmacologic agents is assessed. Anti-inflammatory therapy is evaluated in terms of its primary indications, target population, and utility within a clinical setting.

METHODS

The Medline PubMed database and the World Wide Web were searched for current information regarding dry eye prevalence, pathogenesis, diagnosis, and management. After an analysis of the literature, major concepts were integrated to generate an updated portrayal of the status of dry eye syndrome.

RESULTS

Inflammation appears to play a key role in perpetuating and sustaining dry eye. Discoveries of inflammatory markers found within the corneal and conjunctival epithelium of dry eye patients have triggered recent advancements in therapy. Pharmacologic anti-inflammatory therapy for dry eye includes 2 major categories: corticosteroids and immunomodulatory agents. Fatty acid and androgen supplementation and oral antibiotics have also shown promise in dry eye therapy because of their anti-inflammatory effects.

CONCLUSIONS

Anti-inflammatory pharmacologic agents have shown great success in patients with moderate to severe dry eye when compared with alternative treatment modalities. A deeper understanding of the link between inflammation and dry eye validates the utilization of anti-inflammatory therapy in everyday optometric practice.

Are there differences between ‘visual symptoms’ and specific ocular symptoms associated with video display terminal (VDT) use?

To assess the reliability of self-reported symptoms of asthenopia associated with VDT use (as characterized by general visual symptoms, headache and specific ocular symptoms) for both continuing soft contact lens (SCL) wearers and former SCL wearers who had undergone successful laser-in-situ-keratomileusis (LASIK) surgery.

METHODS

Forty generally healthy adults, aged between 24 and 44 years, were asked to complete a 13 page questionnaire that included requests for information on general visual symptoms, headache and specific ocular symptoms such as dry eye associated with VDT use. The adults were either long term successful soft contact lens wearers (n=20) or a similar group who had then undergone successful LASIK refractive surgery for myopia 2 years prior to the questionnaire being provided.

RESULTS

Most subjects (70%) reported experiencing some visual symptoms sometimes, 62.5% reported headaches sometimes, and 82.5 % reported specific ocular symptoms sometimes. There were no obvious differences between the two groups either in the reported frequency or severity (by visual analogue scale, VAS) of visual symptoms, headache or specific ocular symptoms. However, while the reporting of headache showed no obvious association with the number of specific ocular symptoms reported, the latter showed a clear correlation with the reporting of the severity of visual symptoms (p<0.001).

DISCUSSION

The results indicate that when an individual reports visual symptoms, they may actually be providing recall of specific ocular symptoms. Therefore, contrary to an often common practice, visual symptoms should be assessed separately to specific ocular symptoms such that the appropriate management can be selected. The results also indicate that previous contact lens wearers who have undergone successful LASIK are still likely to experience some visual and specific ocular symptoms when undertaking computer based work on a regular basis.