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Dry eye post-cataract surgery: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Hillary Ta1, Paul McCann1, Mengli Xiao2
1Department of Ophthalmology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, USA.
BMC Ophthalmology
|January 13, 2025
Summary
Cataract surgery can worsen dry eye symptoms, impacting tear film stability and ocular surface health for up to three months post-operation. Further research is needed to understand long-term effects on dry eye after this common procedure.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Surgical Outcomes
- Ocular Surface Disease
Background:
- Cataract surgery is a prevalent global procedure.
- Postoperative dry eye is a known complication impacting patient satisfaction and visual outcomes.
- Understanding the impact on dry eye is crucial for patient quality of life.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effect of cataract surgery on dry eye outcomes postoperatively.
- To assess changes in dry eye parameters after cataract surgery.
Main Methods:
- Systematic review of observational studies (2010-2021) on participants ≥18 years old undergoing cataract surgery.
- Compared postoperative dry eye outcomes (OSDI, TBUT, ST1, CFS) with baseline at short-term (<1 week) and medium-term (1 week-3 months) follow-up.
- Included 20 studies with 1,694 eyes.
Main Results:
- Evidence suggests a decrease in tear break-up time (TBUT) in the short and medium term post-surgery.
- Deterioration in Schirmer's I test (ST1) and corneal fluorescein staining (CFS) was observed at medium-term follow-up.
- Conflicting evidence exists regarding the effect on the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI), with significant heterogeneity across studies.
Conclusions:
- Dry eye symptoms and signs may persist for up to three months following cataract surgery.
- Further studies are necessary to determine if dry eye outcomes resolve to baseline at longer follow-up periods.
- The variability in follow-up durations limits the capture of the full clinical course of postoperative dry eye.
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