Prevalence and Risk Factors of Dry Eye Syndrome in the Incheon Area

Abstract

Purpose: To investigate the prevalence, clinical manifestations, and risk factors of dry eye syndrome (DES) among people over 50 years old in the Incheon area. Methods: A cross-sectional prevalence study was performed on 462 people over 50 years old in Dong-gu, Incheon. DES was defined as the constant or frequent presence of symptoms of both dryness and irritation. Symptoms and past medical history were assessed by a survey. Eye examination included slit lamp examination, Schirmer test, and tear break-up time (T-BUT). Age, sex, living habits, systemic and eye diseases were also analyzed to determine the risk factors of DES. Results: The prevalence of DES was 26.2%. The major symptoms were as follows in descending order: dryness (77.9%), tearing (75.2%), and sandiness (72.7%). An average of 12.1 ± 6.0 mm in the Schirmer test and 6.7 ± 2.4 seconds in the T-BUT were significantly different in the DES group from the normal group (p < 0.001). Variables such as age, sex, living habits, and eye diseases were not related to the diagnosis of DES, whereas diabetes was the only risk factor of DES with statistical significance (p = 0.03). Conclusions:In the present study, the prevalence of DES among people over 50 years old in the Incheon area was 26.2%.Schirmer test and T-BUT were considered to be helpful tools for the diagnosis of DES, and diabetes was a significant risk factor of DES.

Factors Associated with Dry Eye Symptoms in Elderly Koreans: the Fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2010–2012

“…Although some previous studies found no association between aging and the prevalence of dry eye disease [5,9,15,16], other studies showed that the prevalence of dry eye disease increases with age [6,17]. However, our study showed that the prevalence and OR of dry eye symptoms tended to decrease with age.…”

“…A study of people aged ≥65 years in the Yongin area using a six-item questionnaire to assess dry eye symptoms found a crude prevalence of 30.3% [7]. Another community-dwelling populationbased study of people aged ≥50 years in the Incheon area found the prevalence of dry eye symptoms to be 26.2% [9]. That study used a selfadministered six-item questionnaire similar to the one used in the Yongin study.…”

“…Although various studies on dry eye disease have been conducted using the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) in South Korea, most studies have been performed in the general population aged ≥19 years old, and no study on the elderly population has been reported. Furthermore, all studies on dry eye disease in the elderly Korean population have been conducted among the community-dwelling elderly [7,9,10]. Therefore, we aimed to conduct this study to evaluate the factors associated with dry eye symptoms among elderly Koreans by using data from a nationally representative survey.…”

Effects of Dry Eye Symptoms on Work Productivity and General Activity in Newly Building

“…안구건조증 설문 안구건조증은 안구표면질환지수(ocular surface disease index, OSDI)를 사용하여 새건물에서 근무하게 된 이후에 느끼게 된 자각증상을 조사한 후 점수로 환산하였다. [9][10][11] OSDI는 12개의 문항과 각 문항당 4점 척도로 구성되어 [20] 특히, 사무실 근 로자의 업무실적을 저하시키는 내부적인 환경요소로 작용 할 수 있을 것이다. [19] 최근의 연구에서 안구건조증은 작업 실적과 일상활동에 유의한 영향을 미친다고 보고되었다.…”