Assessment of Lower Tear Meniscus

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Optometry
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Dry eye disease (DED) diagnosis relies on various clinical tests.
• Accurate measurement of tear meniscus height (TMH) is crucial for DED assessment.
• The fourth-generation OCULUS keratograph offers advanced imaging capabilities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the applicability and reliability of the fourth-generation OCULUS keratograph for measuring lower tear meniscus height (TMH).
• To evaluate the correlation between TMH measured by the OCULUS keratograph and traditional dry eye diagnostic tests.

Main Methods:

• Seventy DED patients and 37 controls were enrolled.
• Tear breakup time (TBUT), Schirmer test I, and corneal staining were performed.
• Lower tear meniscus images were captured using the OCULUS keratograph for height measurement.

Main Results:

• The OCULUS keratograph demonstrated good inter-individual (ICC=0.914) and intra-individual (ICC=0.939) reliability.
• Lower TMH was observed in the DED group (0.22 mm) compared to controls (0.29 mm) (p<0.001).
• TMH correlated significantly with TBUT (r=0.619) and Schirmer test I (r=0.626) (p<0.001).

Conclusions:

• The OCULUS keratograph is a quick, noninvasive, and reliable tool for measuring lower TMH.
• Measured TMH values show significant correlation with established dry eye diagnostic tests.
• This method offers improved individual variability and repeatability for DED assessment.