Meibomian Gland Morphology: The Influence of Structural Variations on Gland Function and Ocular Surface Parameters

Purpose:
To objectively and quantitatively characterize meibomian gland morphology and to investigate the influence of morphological variations on gland function and ocular surface and tear film parameters.
Methods:
One hundred fifty subjects were enrolled. The examinations included tear osmolarity, tear meniscus height, bulbar conjunctival hyperemia, noninvasive tear film breakup time, lid margin thickness, foam secretion, meibomian gland expressibility, count of functioning glands, corneal and conjunctival staining, fluorescein breakup time, lid wiper epitheliopathy, and Schirmer test. Patient symptoms were assessed using the Ocular Surface Disease Index questionnaire. Images from noncontact meibography were analyzed using an automated method that objectively estimates dropout area, number of glands, gland length and width, and gland irregularity.
Results:
Gland irregularity highly correlated with dropout area (r = −0.4, P

Source: Cornea - November 7, 2019 Category: Opthalmology Tags: Clinical Science Source Type: research