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Dry eye symptom of rheumatoid arthritis, new study confirms

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Dry eye is a common symptom in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), with a correlation between the Lansbury index and Schirmer test in RA patients with Sjogren syndrome (SS), but no correlation when the entire group was analyzed, according to a study.

“Dry eye always should be taken into consideration regardless of the RA activity because the severity of dry eye is independent of RA activity,” the study stated.

Miho Fujita, MD, and colleagues assessed the severity of dry eye in 72 RA patients using the Schirmer test, tear break-down time, rose Bengal staining and fluorescein staining. The RA activity was evaluated by the Lansbury index, which is based on the duration of morning stiffness, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), rip strength and joint score.

The study, published in the American Journal of Ophthalmology, found no difference in dry eye tests or Lansbury index between SS patients and non-SS patients. Even in the non-SS group, the study stated, 90% of patients were diagnosed with probable dry eye.