Abstract: It's the preservative, stupid

Prevalence of Ocular Surface Complaints in Patients With Glaucoma Using Topical Intraocular Pressure-Lowering Medications.
Cornea. 2010 Apr 9. [Epub ahead of print]
Fechtner RD, Godfrey DG, Budenz D, Stewart JA, Stewart WC, Jasek MC.
From the *Department of Ophthalmology, New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ; daggerGlaucoma Associates of Texas, Dallas, TX; double daggerBascom Palmer Eye Institute, University of Miami, Miami, FL; section signPRN Pharmaceutical Research Network, LLC, Dallas, TX; and paragraph signAlcon Laboratories, Inc, Fort Worth, TX.

PURPOSE:: To determine the prevalence of ocular surface disease (OSD) in patients with glaucoma using topical intraocular pressure (IOP) -lowering therapy.

METHODS:: This prospective observational study enrolled patients with primary open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension who were on a topical IOP-lowering medication regimen. Enrolled patients completed the ocular surface disease index (OSDI) and OSDI scores (0-100, with 0 representing no symptoms) were calculated for each patient. Medical history, demographics, and concomitant medication information were also collected.

RESULTS:: Overall, 630 patients from 10 sites participated. Of these, 305 patients (48.4%) had an OSDI score indicating either mild (n = 134, 21.3%), moderate (n = 84, 13.3%), or severe (n = 87, 13.8%) OSD symptoms. OSDI scores were significantly different between patients with and without a prior diagnosis of dry eye syndrome (25.2 +/- 15.4 vs 15.4 +/- 15.8, respectively; P = 0.0036) and between patients who did and did not use artificial tears at the time of study participation (23.0 +/- 15.6 vs 15.3 +/- 15.8, respectively; P = 0.0046). Mean OSDI scores varied significantly with the number of topical IOP-lowering medications used, with higher (more severe) OSDI scores in patients using multiple IOP-lowering medications. Specifically, patients on a single medication had a mean OSDI score of 12.9 +/- 13.1, which was significantly lower than those of patients on 2 (16.7 +/- 17.0; P = 0.007) or 3 medications (19.4 +/- 18.1; P = 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS:: OSD is prevalent among medically treated patients with glaucoma. The severity of OSD symptoms is positively correlated to the number of IOP-lowering medications used.