Prevalence of dry eye among 195 patients with diabetes mellitus patients

Abstract

Background and objective: Dry eye is a disorder of the tear film. There are significant associations between dry eye and environmental factors, autoimmune and chronic diseases like diabetes mellitus and rheumatoid disease. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of dry eye in patients with diabetes mellitus in patients attending Erbil and Rizgary Teaching hospitals in Erbil city. Methods: A hospital-based cross-sectional study of 195 diabetic patients who presented to the department of ophthalmology, Rizgary and Erbil teaching hospitals, Erbil; from February 2011 to December 2011 was conducted. Detailed diabetic history was recorded. Assessment of anterior segment via slitlamp biomicroscopy was done. The examination of dry eye included Schirmer`s test, tear break-up time and fluorescein dye Results: From total 195 patients, eighty-one (41.5%) of them had dry eye. The prevalence of dry eye among older ages (≥60 years) was 49%, which was higher than younger ages (<60 years). The dry eye had a higher percentage in males than females (44.7% and 39.1%, respectively). Those who had diabetes mellitus for <10 years recorded 36.6% dry eyes, however, those who had diabetes mellitus for ≥10years showed 50.7% dry eyes. On the other hand patients with good diabetic control (HbA1c<7%) had a lower prevalence of dry eye than those of uncontrolled one (HbA1c≥7%) with a percentage of 38.5% and 48.3%, respectively. Conclusions: There was a high prevalence of dry eyes among diabetic patients in Erbil city. The prevalence of dry eye is higher in those with duration of diabetes for more than ten years. There was no statistically significant difference between male and female. The sensitivity of tear break-up time test was higher than Schirmer`s test for diagnosing dry eye.