Tear film layers and meibomian gland assessment in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus using a noninvasive ocular surface analyzer: a cross-sectional case–control study

PURPOSE: To assess the tear film layers and Meibomian glands by a noninvasive ocular surface analyzer in patients with and without type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). METHODS: Eighty-eight participants were enrolled in this study: 44 patients with T1DM without diabetic retinopathy, and 44 patients as a control group, between 18 and 49 years old. Limbal and bulbar redness classification, lipid layer thickness (LLT), tear meniscus height (TMH), first and mean noninvasive tear break-up time (FNIBUT and MNIBUT, respectively), and Meibomian glands loss (MGL) were assessment through the ICP Ocular Surface Analyzer (OSA). Schirmer’s I test (SIT), the fluorescein tear break-up time test (TFBUT), OSDI and SPEED questionnaires, and percentage of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) were also tested. RESULTS: The T1DM group showed higher limbal and bulbar redness (p = 0.010) and lower LLT (p < 0.001), TMH (p < 0.001), FNIBUT (p < 0.001), MNIBUT (p < 0.001), SIT (p = 0.001), and TFBUT (p < 0.001) than the control group. A higher percentage of MGL was found in the T1DM group in the upper (p = 0.097) and lower (p < 0.001) eyelids. No significant differences were found in dry eye symptoms across the OSDI and SPEED questionnaires between the two groups. CONCLUSION: Patients with T1DM without signs of retinopathy showed involvement of the mucoaqueous and lipid layers of the tear film, as well as a higher percentage of MGL, using a noninvasive analyzer. Dry eye disease in people with T1DM cannot be ruled out by anamnesis and subjective symptom questionnaires alone; therefore, these patients should undergo regular anterior pole examinations. [Image: see text]