Vol 33 No. 2 Original Article PDF

Effect of lubricating eye drops on posterior-lid-margin sign in patients with dysfunctional-tear syndrome

John Alfred H. Lim, MD, Ruben Lim Bon Siong, MD

Objective
This study compared the effect of lubricating eye drops on the posteriorlid- margin (PLM) sign and correlated the PLM sign with dry-eye symptoms among patients with dysfunctional-tear syndrome (DTS).

Methods
A double-masked, randomized clinical trial was conducted involving 30 eyes of 30 patients diagnosed with DTS who had the PLM sign. They were randomly assigned to receive one of the following: PEG 400 propylene glycol (Systane), hydroxypropylmethylcellulose (Genteal), or carboxymethylcellulose (Cellufresh). Primary outcome measure was the resolution time of the PLM sign after treatment with the eye drops. Secondary outcome measure was the correlation between ocular-discomfort grading and the PLM-sign severity grading.

Results
Ten patients in each group completed the study. The three groups were statistically equal (p = 0.354) in terms of the mean resolution time of the PLM sign. The PLM sign had a positive moderate correlation with the subjective grading of ocular discomfort with a correlation coefficient of 0.74 at baseline.

Conclusion
Systane, Genteal, and Cellufresh were equally effective in resolving the PLM sign. The PLM-sign severity grading was also correlated with the subjective grading of ocular discomfort.

Keywords: Posterior-lid-margin sign, Lid wiper, Lid-wiper epitheliopathy, Dysfunctional-tear syndrome, Lubricating eye drops, Dry eye