Prevalence of dry eye among patients with red eye

Abstract

Aim: To investigate the dry eye syndrome (DES) among patients with red eye. Materials and Methods: This is hospital-based, cross-sectional, case control study. We selected about 100 patients with red eye and 100 patients without red eye (control group) from the same area. A complete eye examination was performed including Schirmer's test and fluorescein staining. Results: The study showed that symptoms and signs in the DES patients with red eye is greatly higher than in patients without red eye (P = 0.001). The prevalence of dry eye in patients with red eye is 32% and in patients without red eye is 40%. Conclusion: Red DES is an advanced stage of DES and it reflects the severity of the DES. Schirmer's test and fluorescein staining are important diagnostic tests for dry eye and hence, they should be included in the routine examination especially in red eye patients.