Relation between total tear IgE and severity of acute seasonal allergic conjunctivitis

Measurement of total tear immunoglobulin E (IgE) is useful for the diagnosis of allergic conjunctivitis, but it is still unknown whether measurement of total tear IgE is useful for assessment of the severity of allergic conjunctivitis. We evaluated the relation between the total IgE level in tears and objective signs of allergic conjunctivitis.

A prospective, nonrandomized, and cross-sectional study was conducted in 84 patients with allergic conjunctivitis (allergic group) and 80 age- and sex-matched healthy control subjects (control group). The total tear IgE score was obtained with the Allerwatch(®) test (0, 1, and 2), and ten severity scores (0, 1, 2, 3) were determined for objective ocular findings of the palpebral and bulbar conjunctiva, as well as limbal and corneal lesions.

The scores for total tear IgE and each of the objective ocular findings were higher in the allergic group than in the control group (all p < 0.01). The total tear IgE score was correlated with the severity of each clinical feature of allergic conjunctivitis (p < 0.01), except for corneal epithelial damage in the allergic group. Multivariate analysis revealed that the severity of giant papillae was the most important indicator of the total tear IgE score (odds ratio = 1.33, p < 0.00001).

The total tear IgE score was correlated with the scores for objective signs of allergic conjunctivitis. This rapid test for total IgE in tear fluid is easy to perform and could be used to assess the severity of allergic conjunctivitis on an outpatient basis.