| Changes in Total Tear Protein and Lipocalin Concentration According to Frequency of Artificial Tear Usage. |
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Jong Heon Kim, Jeong Woo Kang, Min Gyu Choi, Kyoo Won Lee, Jae Chan Kim |
1Cheil Eye Hospital, Daegu, Korea. jck50ey@daum.net
2Department of Ophthalmology, Chung-Ang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea. |
| 인공눈물 점안 횟수에 따른 눈물 내 총 단백질과 리포칼린 농도의 변화 |
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김종헌1⋅강정우2⋅최민규2⋅이규원1⋅김재찬1 |
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제일안과병원1, 중앙대학교 의과대학 안과학교실2 |
Correspondence:
Jae Chan Kim,
Email: jck50ey@daum.net
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Received: 22 November 2018 • Revised: 29 January 2019 • Accepted: 23 April 2019 |
| Abstract |
PURPOSE
To investigate the effect of frequent use of artificial tears on dry eye syndrome (DES) by analyzing the changes in total protein concentration, lipocalin concentration, and the ratio of lipocalin-to-total protein concentration in tears. METHODS: A prospective study was performed on 24 eyes of patients with DES and 24 eyes of control subjects. Artificial eye drops were applied a total of eight times (15-minutes intervals) to all participants. The concentrations of total protein and lipocalin in tears were analyzed before, and after one, two, four, and eight applications. The ratio of lipocalin-to-total protein concentration was also analyzed. RESULTS: Total tear potein concentration of 3.35 mg/mL had decreased to 3.16 mg/mL after use of artificial tears for control while it had decreased from 1.53 to 0.87 mg/mL for patients. Both groups showed significant decrease (p = 0.04, p < 0.01, respectively). Lipocalin concentration also showed significant decreases in both control and DES patients for all applications (from 1.15 to 0.85 mg/mL for control, and from 0.49 to 0.22 mg/mL for DES patients, both, p < 0.01). The change in the ratio of lipocalin-to-total protein concentration was significant in the control group (p = 0.03) but not in the patient group (p = 0.21). CONCLUSIONS: A significant decrease was observed in the concentrations of total protein and lipocalin in the DES patient group. The ratio of lipocalin-to-total protein concentration was also significantly decreased when eye drops were applied four times. These results suggested that the frequent use of artificial eye drops exacerbated DES. |
| Key Words:
Artificial tear;Dry eye syndrome;Lipocalin;Total tear protein |
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