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Dry eye linked to premature ovarian failure, study finds
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Signs and symptoms of dry eye and ocular surface damage are more likely in women with premature ovarian failure than in age-matched controls, according to a study at several branches of the National Institutes of Health.
The study, the first to link the two diseases, provides further evidence of the many roles of sex hormones in the health of the ocular surface, the researchers said.
Janine A. Smith, MD, and colleagues studied women with premature ovarian failure (POF) to assess signs and symptoms of dry eye and ocular surface disease. POF occurs when the ovaries cease their normal function in women under the age of 40. Studies have shown that women with POF have an increased likelihood of developing osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease.
The Ocular Surface Disease Index questionnaire and the National Eye Institute’s Visual Function Questionnaire were administered to 65 women with POF and 36 age-matched healthy control participants. Ocular surface damage and tear status analysis were performed on all participants.
Women with POF scored significantly worse than controls on all ocular surface damage parameters: Oxford score (P = .001), conjunctival lissamine green staining (P = .02), corneal fluorescein staining (P = .005) and van Bijsterveld score (P = .02).
The proportion of patients with a van Bijsterveld score of at least 4 was significantly greater for women with POF than women without POF (P = .02). Women with POF also had worse scores on self-reported symptoms.
Schirmer test scores and tear breakup time did not differ between the groups.
“To our knowledge, this association between ocular surface disease and POF has not been previously reported,” the authors note in the February issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.