Effect on determinants of dry eye after phacoemulsification

Abstract

Quantitative analysis of determinants of dry eye among patients undergoing phacoemulsification surgery. This was a single-centered hospital-based, prospective observational study. Sixty eyes of sixty patients suffering from senile cataract undergoing phacoemulsification surgery were evaluated after randomly selecting them and were followed up postoperatively on day 1 and week 4 to evaluate the dry eye parameters selected for the study.A total of 60 eyes of 60 patients were chosen with a mean age of 63.96 ± 6.95 (mean ± SD) years. The mean baseline Schirmer’s test I, tear break-up time, lissamine test, and OSDI values were 25.45 ± 4.68 mm, 14.15±2.79 s, 1.26 ± 0.44 s, and 7.28 ± 3.13 respectively, whereas post-operatively day 1 the values were 14.75 ± 4.32 mm, 8.91 ± 2.93 s, 3.11 ± 0.78, and 22.85 ± 6.80 respectively. On 4 week follow-up, the value were 22.60 ± 4.54 mm, 13.30 ± 2.79 s, 1.43 ± 0.67, and 12.13 ± 5.45 respectively.Dry eye after cataract surgery is mainly because of tear film stability.The study points to the fact that patients experience increase in dry eye symptoms postoperatively. We also observed a very predictable trend of dry eye in our study, wherein the incidence increases immediately in the early postoperative period, followed by a gradual decrease in dry eye parameters approaching their preoperative baseline value.