Dry eye and percentage of body fat: a cross-sectional prospective study

Background Dry eyes are common in the general population. Some studies associate high prevalence of dry eyes with lipid metabolic changes and body fat composition. Aim To study the association of dry eye with percentage of body fat. Methods One hundred and thirty five individuals (44 males and 91 females; median age of 42 years) were studied in a cross-sectional prospective study. Schirmer test and TBUT (tear breakup time) test were used to access dry eye. Body composition (percentage of lean and fat mass) were calculated using anthropometric measurements that included height, weight, abdominal, waist and neck circumference. Results About 44.4% of the sample had abnormal Schirmer test, and 70.3% had abnormal TBUT. Schirmer tests values were associated with age ( p = 0.0006) female gender ( p = 0.04) and percentage of body fat ( p = 0.02). Abnormal TBUT test associated only with age ( p = 0.0005). Conclusions Percentage of body fat is associated with abnormal Schirmer but not TBUT test.