A multicenter evaluation of ocular surface disease prevalence in patients with glaucoma

Background: Glaucoma can be associated with an increase in the occurrence of ocular surface disease (OSD) symptoms. The objective of this study was to examine the prevalence of ocular surface complaints in patients with glaucoma who used topical intraocular pressure (IOP)-lowering therapies. Methods: In this multicenter, international, noninterventional study, adults with glaucoma or ocular hypertension who were using 1 or more topical IOP-lowering medications completed the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) questionnaire during a regularly scheduled clinic visit. OSDI scores (ranging from 0 to 100) were calculated for each patient. An OSDI score >13 indicated a clinically relevant presence of OSD. Results: Of the 448 patients who were evaluated, 53.3% were women, 61.6% had a diagnosis of primary open-angle glaucoma, and the mean age was 63 years. The overall OSD prevalence rate in the evaluable population was 59.2%, with 25.7%, 13.2%, and 20.3% of the patients reporting mild, moderate, or severe OSD symptoms, respectively. Patients with glaucoma diagnoses of less than 6 years had a significantly lower mean OSDI score relative to patients with glaucoma diagnoses of 6 years or more (18 [mild OSD] versus 23 [moderate OSD], respectively; P = 0.03). As the number of IOP-lowering treatments increased from one or two medications to three or four medications, the mean OSDI score increased from mild to moderate, though the difference in scores was not statistically significant (P = 0.15). Conclusions: OSD was highly prevalent in this population of glaucoma patients who were using IOP-lowering medications. Longer duration since diagnosis was significantly correlated with worsening of OSD symptoms. Increases in the number of medications applied also showed a clinically relevant increase in OSD symptom severity.