Dry eye disease symptoms and quality of life in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women

Objective This study aimed to evaluate dry eye disease (DED) symptoms and quality of life (QoL) in a group of perimenopausal and postmenopausal women, based on the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) questionnaire. Methods An observational study was performed in a group of 1947 perimenopausal and postmenopausal women, aged between 45 and 79 years. The personal data collected were age, menopause status, age at menopause, and OSDI score. Results The mean age of the group was 54.18 +/- 6.84 years, with a mean age at menopause of 49.45 +/- 4.02 years. The average OSDI score was 29.20 +/- 19.4. The overall prevalence of DED symptoms was 79%, increasing significantly in postmenopausal women, 76.4% vs. 80.5% (p = 0.029). In our group, 37.7% had severe DED symptoms. Ocular symptoms, vision-related functions, and environmental trigger scores were higher in postmenopausal women, leading to a lower QoL. The severity of OSDI score increases with age (beta coefficient: 0.15 [95% confidence interval: 0.02; -0.28]), while the severity of OSDI score decreases with a later onset age of menopause (beta coefficient: -0.27 [95% confidence interval: -0.55; -0.01]). Conclusions DED symptoms are highly prevalent in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women. Postmenopausal women had a higher prevalence of symptoms and higher OSDI scores than perimenopausal women. The severity of DED symptoms and vision-related functions leads to poorer QoL.