Blue Mountains study finds dry eye prevalent in older patients

Dry eye is common in an older population and has associations with systemic diseases, according to a report from a large cohort study. Women are more likely to report the syndrome than men, the Australian study found.

Paul Mitchell, FRANZCO, and colleagues at the University of Sydney analyzed data from 1,174 participants in the Blue Mountains Eye Study. The mean age of participants was 61. At least one dry eye symptom was reported by 57.5% of participants, with 16.6% reporting moderate to severe symptoms. Reports of symptoms were more frequent in women.

Three or more symptoms were reported by 15% of participants, also more frequently by women. No age-related trends or significant ocular associations were observed. Systemic factors significantly associated with dry eye included a history of arthritis, gout, use of corticosteroids, antidepressants and hormone replacement therapy.

The study is published in the June issue of Clinical & Experimental Ophthalmology.