Abstract
Purpose
Schirmer and tear film break-up time tests are most commonly used in the diagnosis of dry eye syndrome. The aim of the study is to investigate the age- and gender-related changes in the results of Schirmer and tear film break-up time tests in normal population.
Methods
This randomized prospective study included 140 normal volunteers (70 male and 70 female subjects) with no ocular symptoms or ocular surface disorders. Schirmer and tear film break-up time tests were assessed in only one eye (right) of each subject. The study subjects were divided into seven groups according to their ages. Each group was composed of 20 eyes of 20 subjects (10 male and 10 female subjects). For variance analysis, Kruskal–Wallis test was used. Mann–Whitney U-test was performed for double comparisons.
Results
We detected a statistically highly significant difference among the age groups in respect to the tear film break-up time test (P<0.001), especially there was a statistically highly significant difference between the younger and older age groups. There was no statistically significant difference in the Schirmer test results. But, we found that Schirmer test values were gradually decreased with advancing age. Tear function tests did not show statistically significant difference according to sex.
Conclusions
Our results reveal that there is a decline in the tear function test values, especially the tear film break-up time test values with advancing age. We suggest that the age of subjects should be taken into consideration in the evaluation of tear function test results.
Similar content being viewed by others
Log in or create a free account to read this content
Gain free access to this article, as well as selected content from this journal and more on nature.com
or
References
Farris FL, Gilbard JP, Stuchell RN, Mandell ID . Diagnostic tests in keratoconjunctivitis sicca. CLAO J 1983; 9: 23–28.
Goren MB, Goren SB . Diagnostic tests in patients with symptoms of keratoconjunctivitis sicca. Am J Ophthalmol 1988; 106: 570–574.
Lemp MA . Report of the national eye institute/industry workshop on clinical trials in dry eyes. CLAO J 1995; 21: 221–232.
Schirmer O . Studien zur Physiologie und Pathologie der Tra¨neabsonderung und Tra¨nenabfuhr. Graefes Arch Klin Exp Ophthalmol 1903; 56: 197–291.
Jones LT . The lacrimal secretory system and its treatment. Am J Ophthalmol 1966; 62: 47–60.
Kanski JJ . Clinical Ophthalmology, 3rd edn. Betterworth Heinemann: London, 1994.
Hykin PG, Bron AJ . Age-related morphological changes in lid margin and meibomian gland anatomy. Cornea 1992; 11: 334–342.
Den S, Shimizu K, Ikeda T, Tsubota K, Shimmura S, Shimazaki J . Association between meibomian gland changes and aging, sex, or tear function. Cornea 2006; 25: 651–655.
Mathers WD, Stovall D, Lane JA, Zimmerman MB, Johnson S . Menopause and tear function: the influence of prolactin and sex hormones on human tear production. Cornea 1998; 17: 353–358.
Mathers WD, Lane JA, Zimmerman MB . Tear film changes associated with normal aging. Cornea 1996; 15: 229–234.
Shimmura S, Shimazaki J, Tsubota K . Results of a population-based questionnaire on the symptoms and lifestyles associated with dry eye. Cornea 1999; 18: 408–411.
Patel S, Wallace I . Tear meniscus height, lower punctum lacrimale, and the tear lipid layer in normal aging. Optom Vis Sci 2006; 83: 731–739.
Uchino M, Dogru M, Yagi Y, Goto E, Tomita M, Kon T et al. The features of dry eye disease in a Japanese elderly population. Optom Vis Sci 2006; 83: 797–802.
Sullivan DA, Krenzer KL, Sullivan BD, Tolls DB, Toda I, Dana MR . Does androgen insufficiency cause lacrimal gland inflammation and aqueous tear deficiency? Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 1999; 40: 1261–1265.
Sullivan DA, Sullivan BD, Evans JE, Schirra F, Yamagami H, Liu M et al. Androgen deficiency, meibomian gland dysfunction, and evaporative dry eye. Ann NY Acad Sci 2002; 966: 211–222.
Sullivan DA . Androgen deficiency & dry eye syndromes. Arch Soc Esp Oftalmol 2004; 79: 49–50.
Maudgil SS, Khurana AK, Singh M, Parmar IP, Ahluwalia BK . Tear film flow and stability in normal Indian subjects. Indian J Ophthalmol 1989; 37: 182–183.
Cho P, Yap M . Age, gender, and tear break-up time. Optom Vis Sci 1993; 70: 828–831.
Mohidin N, Bay TC, Yap M . Non-invasive tear break-up time in normal Malays. Clin Exp Optom 2002; 85: 37–41.
Emina MO, Emina B . A study on tear stability, tear meniscus height and cornea curvature on healthy black subjects. S Afr Optom 2006; 65: 107–111.
Hirase K, Shimizu A, Yokoi N, Nishida K, Kinoshita S . Age-related alteration of tear dynamics in normal volunteers. Nippon Ganka Gakkai Zasshi 1994; 98: 575–578.
Sullivan DA, Edwards JA . Androgen stimulation of lacrimal gland function in mouse models of Sjögren's syndrome. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol 1997; 60: 237–245.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Ozdemir, M., Temizdemir, H. Age- and gender-related tear function changes in normal population. Eye 24, 79–83 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/eye.2009.21
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/eye.2009.21
Keywords
This article is cited by
-
Reduced tear fluid production in neurological diseases: a cohort study in 708 patients
Journal of Neurology (2024)
-
Exposure limits for indoor volatile substances concerning the general population: The role of population-based differences in sensory irritation of the eyes and airways for assessment factors
Archives of Toxicology (2024)
-
Clinical Ocular Exposure Extrapolation for Ophthalmic Solutions Using PBPK Modeling and Simulation
Pharmaceutical Research (2023)
-
Characteristics of the Ocular Surface in Myopic Child Candidates of Orthokeratology Lens Wear
Ophthalmology and Therapy (2023)
-
Preoperative dry eyes disease in cataract patients with deficient tear break up time: evaluation of OSDI questionnaire, its subcategories and Keratograph 5M device results
International Ophthalmology (2022)
