PREVALENCE AND RISK FACTORS OF DRY EYE DISEASE SYMPTOMS AMONG MEDICAL UNDERGRADUATES IN SOUTH INDIA

Aarudhra Premchander; Ananya Chakraborty; Vittal Naik; Hiren Kolli; Supriya Acharya

Volume : IX, Issue : II, February - 2020

PREVALENCE AND RISK FACTORS OF DRY EYE DISEASE SYMPTOMS AMONG MEDICAL UNDERGRADUATES IN SOUTH INDIA

Aarudhra Premchander, Ananya Chakraborty, Vittal Naik, Hiren Kolli, Supriya Acharya

Abstract :

BACKGROUND: The study was conducted to determine the prevalence of symptomatic Dry Eye Disease (DED) its relationship with associated risk factors among medical undergraduates. METHODS: This cross–sectional study was conducted between December 2017 to May 2018. After Institutional Ethics Committee approval, a validated questionnaire was administered to second and third year medical undergraduates. The severity of the disease was measured via the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) questionnaire. RESULTS: The mean age of the participants (�SD) was 20.33�1.15 years. The overall prevalence of DED was 39.1%. The prevalence of mild, moderate and severe DED were 21.8% (104), 10% (48) and 7.3% (35) respectively. There was statistically significant association of DED with refractive error, headache, and use of eye drops. CONCLUSION: Symptomatic DED is prevalent amongst medical undergraduates. It is important to diagnose the condition and risk factors early and thereby orient the future doctors towards betterment of their own overall ocular health.