MMP-8 concentration and activation degree in tear fluid are increased in OcR, probably reflecting increased inflammatory activity. Doxycycline effectively reduces these pathologically excessive levels and activation of MMP-8, and relieves patients' subjective symptoms.
ABSTRACT.Purpose: To determine the concentration of group IIA phospholipase A 2 (GIIAPLA 2 ) in tears of patients with ocular rosacea, and to compare it with GIIAPLA 2 concentration in tears of age-matched healthy controls. Methods: The GIIAPLA 2 concentration in tears was measured with a timeresolved fluoroimmunoassay in 21 patients with ocular rosacea (mean age 55.6±9.2 years) and in 21 normal subjects (mean age 53.4±8.2 years). Conjunctival brush cytology was carried out and eosinophils, neutrophils, lymphocytes, squamous epithelial cells, columnar epithelial cells, metaplastic changes and goblet cells were calculated separately. Results: The GIIAPLA 2 concentration in tears was statistically significantly lower in patients with ocular rosacea (31.0±18.4 mg/ml, p=0.0099) and, more specifically, in patients who had dry eye (25.8±15.1 mg/ml, p=0.0034), compared to that in normal controls. There was no correlation between the GIIAPLA 2 content of tears and the conjunctival cells collected by the brush cytology. Conclusion: The tears of patients with dry eye symptoms due to ocular rosacea have decreased GIIAPLA 2 content. The pathogenic importance of this finding is discussed.
The results indicate that in patients with ABC the GIIAPLA(2) content of tears was decreased, without any dependence on the quantity of different conjunctival cells.
The results showed that NAEC is an inflammatory condition characterized by increased tear fluid MMP-8 levels, probably derived from both inflammatory and structural conjunctival cells. The increased proteolytic activity in NAEC patients may indicate risk of conjunctival structural changes (remodeling).
: A higher mean concentration and activation of MMP-8 is present in tear fluid in ABC. This finding probably reflects persistent inflammatory and collagenolytic activity associated with the disease.
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