Vitamin D deficiency linked to worse symptoms in dry eye patients, finds study
China: Dry eye patients having vitamin D deficiency may experience less tear production and worse subjective symptoms, according to a recent study published in the journal Acta Ophthalmologica. This suggests that vitamin D deficiency might be a risk factor for dry eye syndrome.
Jing Liu, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China, and colleagues conducted a systematic review and meta‐analysis to determine the association between vitamin D level and dry eye.
The researchers performed a systematic literature search using PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library databases. The studies that evaluated the association between vitamin D and dry eye were included. The random‐effect model was used to combine the results. Overall, a total of 10 studies consisting of 18919 patients were included.
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Key findings of the study include:
- Patients with dry eye had a mean serum vitamin D level that was lower than that in healthy controls by 3.99 ng/ml.
- The mean Ocular Surface Disease Index score was higher (mean difference 10.70) and Schirmer's test without anesthesia result was lower (mean difference 6.38 mm/5 min) in patients with vitamin D deficiency than in controls.
- Tear break‐up time was comparable in the vitamin D deficiency and control groups.
- Sensitivity analyses indicated that the results obtained were robust.
"This meta‐analysis suggested that vitamin D deficiency is associated with worse subjective symptoms and less tear production in patients with dry eye. Vitamin D deficiency may be a risk factor for dry eye syndrome," wrote the authors.
"Prospective cohort and intervention studies are warranted to determine if vitamin D has a protective role in the development of dry eye," they concluded.
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The study, "Vitamin D deficiency is associated with dry eye syndrome: a systematic review and meta‐analysis," was published in the journal Acta Ophthalmologica.
