Effects of artificial tear treatment on corneal epithelial thickness and cornea topography findings in dry eye patients

Purpose. - To investigate the effects of artificial tear treatment on central corneal epithelial thickness, and central, mid-peripheral and peripheral corneal thicknesses in patients with dry eye disease (DED). Material-methods. - Patients with DED underwent ocular examinations, including Schirmer-2 test, slit tamp examination for tear break-up time (BUT), corneal topography (CT) for measuring mean central, mid-peripheral and peripheral corneal thickness values and anterior segment optic coherence tomography (AS-OCT) for obtaining central corneal epithelial thickness. After artificial tear treatment (carboxymethylcellutose and sodium hyaluronate formulations) for one month, patients were examined again at a second visit and the results were compared. Results. - Sixty-one eyes of 33 female dry eye patients (mean age: 38.3 +/- 5.7 years) were enrolled. The mean follow-up time was 36.4 +/- 3.3 days. The mean tear BUT and Schirmer-1 tests revealed significant improvement after treatment (P=0.000, P=0.000, respectively). Central corneal epithelium and mean mid-peripheral corneal thicknesses measured significantly higher after treatment (P = 0.001, P = 0.02). Changes in central and peripheral corneal thicknesses were not statistically significant. Conclusion.- Artificial tear treatment in dry eye patients seems to increase central corneal epithelial and mid-peripheral corneal thicknesses. Measurement of corneal epithelial thickness can be a useful tool for evaluation of treatment response in dry eye patients. Further long-term prospective studies are needed to investigate this item. (C) 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.