Examining vulnerability to dry eye disease among patients who use prosthetics

New research published in British Journal of Ophthalmology has examined tear secretion among patients who wear prosthetic eyes.

Scientists from the Karolinska Institutet and Lund University in Sweden recruited a group of 12 patients who wear prosthetic eyes to investigate why many people experience dry eye symptoms in the anophthalmic socket.

The amount of tear secretion was measured through direct imaging of the lacrimal gland, while the presence of meibomian glands was assessed using meibography.

Dry eye symptoms among the study group were assessed using the 5-item Dry Eye Questionnaire.

The researchers found that there was no significant difference in tear secretion between the anophthalmic socket and contralateral eye.

However, the area of meibomian glands was significantly reduced in eyelids on the side of the prosthetic eye, compared with the contralateral eye.

In the study group, seven patients reported symptoms indicative of dry eye in the anophthalmic socket, compared with only two in the contralateral eye.

The researchers concluded that while tear secretion remains unaffected in the anophthalmic socket, the effects of an eye prosthesis on meibomian glands may contribute to dry eye symptoms.

“This should be considered in future treatment strategies for dry anophthalmic socket syndrome to successfully alleviate this troublesome problem,” the authors emphasised.