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. 2019 May 21;8(5):721.
doi: 10.3390/jcm8050721.

Characteristics of Individuals with Dry Eye Symptoms Without Clinical Diagnosis: Analysis of a Web-Based Survey

Ryutaro Yamanishi  1 , Miki Uchino  2 , Motoko Kawashima  3 , Yuichi Uchino  4 , Norihiko Yokoi  5 , Kazuo Tsubota  6
Affiliations

Characteristics of Individuals with Dry Eye Symptoms Without Clinical Diagnosis: Analysis of a Web-Based Survey

Ryutaro Yamanishi et al. J Clin Med. .

Abstract

Currently, the available treatment for dry eye disease (DED) varies. The present study aimed to investigate the characteristics of undiagnosed DED and patient-based self-care management for DED based on a web-based survey performed for Tear's Day in Japan; 1030 participants (301 women) responded; 155 participants (72 women) had a clinical diagnosis of DED. We defined undiagnosed DED (n = 116; 54 women) as those with DED symptoms, as evaluated by a frequently used questionnaire despite not having a clinical diagnosis. A multivariate adjusted model indicated that younger age (odds ratio (OR), 0.97 for each one-year decrease; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.95-0.99), female sex (OR, 2.12; 95% CI, 1.28-3.50), and prolonged visual display terminal usage (OR, 1.12; 95% CI, 1.04-1.21) were risk factors for undiagnosed DED. To investigate the efficacy of self-care management for DED, a sub-analysis was conducted. The number of self-care methods used was significantly higher among women than men. For undiagnosed DED, those with less than three self-care methods had a significantly worse Dry Eye-related Quality-of-Life Score compared with those with diagnosed DED. This study revealed risk factors for undiagnosed DED; individuals with those risk factors need to be clinically assessed and should not rely solely on self-care.

Keywords: dry eye disease; risk factor; self-care; undiagnosed dry eye disease.

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Conflict of interest statement

Ryutaro Yamanishi, Miki Uchino, Motoko Kawashima, and Yuichi Uchino declare that they have no conflicts of interest. Norihiko Yokoi: Consultant for Alcon Japan, Ltd.; and Rohto Co, Ltd. Kazuo Tsubota: Consultant and research funding received from Santen Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.; research funding received from Kowa Company; founder of Tsubo Labo, Tokyo, Japan. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Participants flow chart. The participants were stratified with diagnosed history and symptom of dry eye disease (DED). Diagnosed DED—physician diagnosis of DED (+); undiagnosed DED—physician diagnosis of DED (−) and severe symptoms of DED (+); non DED—physician diagnosis of DED (−) and severe symptoms of DED (−).
Figure 2
Figure 2
The number of self-care methods and Dry Eye-related Quality of Life Score among undiagnosed and diagnosed dry eye disease. The difference in Dry Eye-related Quality of Life Score (DEQS) between undiagnosed/diagnosed dry eye disease (DED), stratified with the amount of self-care items for DED. (a) DEQS summary score; (b) DEQS bothersome ocular symptoms score; (c) DEQS impact of daily life score.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The number of self-care methods and Dry Eye-related Quality of Life Score among undiagnosed and diagnosed dry eye disease. The difference in Dry Eye-related Quality of Life Score (DEQS) between undiagnosed/diagnosed dry eye disease (DED), stratified with the amount of self-care items for DED. (a) DEQS summary score; (b) DEQS bothersome ocular symptoms score; (c) DEQS impact of daily life score.
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