Abstract
FOR YEARS there has been a general belief that newborn infants do not secrete tears. In the latest editions of the standard pediatric texts,1,2authors state that lacrimation is absent or minimal during the first few weeks of life. Many ophthalmologists are of the same opinion, based solely on an impression gained from the literature or from clinical teaching. Little definitive experimental work, however, has been done on the subject. The validity of this prevailing clinical impression was questioned for several reasons. First, newborn infants on inspection appear to have a moistened conjunctiva. Secondly, they rarely have the complications of the cornea and conjunctiva which are usually associated with deficient lacrimation. This study, using a simple quantitative test for tear secretion (Schirmer Test I ), was undertaken to determine: (1) whether newborn infants secrete tears, ( 2 ) if there is a pattern in the amount of tear secretion during the first
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