Dry eye symptoms assessed by four questionnaires.

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Clinical Research
• Patient-Reported Outcomes

Background:

• Dry eye disease is prevalent and impacts quality of life.
• Accurate assessment of dry eye symptoms is crucial for diagnosis and management.
• Several questionnaires exist to evaluate dry eye symptoms, but their interrelationships and validity require further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the relationships between the Dry Eye Questionnaire (DEQ), McMonnies Questionnaire (MQ), and Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI).
• To assess the construct and face validity of the Subjective Evaluation of Symptom of Dryness (SESDry) tool.
• To compare the performance of different dry eye symptom questionnaires.

Main Methods:

• Ninety-seven non-contact lens wearers were categorized into 'dry' and 'non-dry' groups.
• Participants completed the DEQ, MQ, OSDI, and SESDry in a random order.
• Rasch analysis and receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analysis were used to evaluate unidimensionality and accuracy, with non-parametric statistics for symptom associations.

Main Results:

• The DEQ, MQ, and OSDI demonstrated unidimensionality via Rasch analysis.
• All questionnaires effectively differentiated between symptomatic and asymptomatic subjects (ROC area under the curve ≥ 0.88).
• Significant correlations were found between the scores of the different questionnaires (Spearman rho ≥ 0.64).

Conclusions:

• Validated dry eye questionnaires yield similar, unidimensional data reflective of symptom severity.
• The findings support the high correlation between established dry eye instruments.
• A simple, three-question screening tool demonstrates utility in dry eye research for identifying symptomatic individuals.