A Study of the Prevalence of Dry Eye in Type 2 Diabetes Patients and Correlation with Severity and Duration of Diabetes

To find the prevalence of dry eye in type 2 diabetes patients and correlate with severity and duration of diabetes.

200 patients of type 2 diabetes mellitus attending OPD in B.L.D.E.U'S Shri B.M.Patil Medical College, Hospital and Research centre, Bijapur were consecutively selected. The study was conducted during the period from April 2013 to December 2013.

Clinical data of all patients which included sex, age, duration of diabetes as well as a history of other diseases, were obtained by reviewing the medical records and direct patient interview.

All patients were subjected to various tests to detect dry eye in diabetic patients. These included:

Schimer's test

Tear film break up time (tbut)

Lissamine green test

Blood investigations

Random blood sugars/fasting and post prandial blood sugars

Hba1c levels.

In this study 200 diabetic patients were assessed. Of 200 patients, 71 were male and 129 were female. Out of them, 87 patients (43.5%) had dry eye syndrome, with prevalence among males 30 (42.25%) and females 57 (44.10%). The age of diabetic patients ranged from 40 years to more than 70years. And the highest prevalence of dry eye was noted in the age group of 60–70 years. The incidence of dry eye increased with increase in duration of diabetes which showed 60% in patients with duration of diabetes of more than 20 years. The diabetic retinopathy changes (ETDRS Classification) increased with the chronicity of the diabetes.

This study highlights the fact that examination for dry eye should be an integral part of the assessment of diabetic patients as there is a direct relation between the age of the patient, Dry Eye, prevalence and severity of DR with duration/chronicity of Diabetes.