EVALUATE THE RATE OF PRODUCTION OF TEARS IN PATIENTS DIAGNOSED WITH HYPOTHYROIDISM USING SCHIRMER STRIPS, A DESCRIPTIVE CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY

Abstract

Background: Hypothyroidism" refers to the pathological condition of thyroid hormone shortage, the definition of hypothyroidism is primarily biochemical because of the vast range of clinical presentations and the general lack of specificity of symptoms. In the general population, the prevalence of overt hypothyroidism ranges from 0.2 to 5.3% in Europe and from 0.4 to 3.9% in the United States of America. One there aren't many research on the incidence of diseases in Colombia, but those that have been done so far have revealed that the prevalence of hypothyroidism is high—10%—when compared to the rest of Latin America. According to a study done in Bogotá, the prevalence is 18.5%2, 3 while  20.6%. Women and people over 50 are more likely to have it. Methodology of Study:This cross-sectional study included 101 clinically diagnosed hypothyroidism patients, ranging in age from 20 to 60. A dry eye questionnaire and the Schirmer’s test  were used to measure the rate of production of tears in hypothyroidism.Results: Out of 101 hypothyroidism patients, 30.91% of participants had normal eyes. Of the remaining, 39.09% had mild dry eyes, and 25.50% had moderate dry eyes. Significant evidence from the Schirmer test indicated that 4.50% of patients had suffered from severe dry eyes. Conclusions :  This study has demonstrated that patients with hypothyroidism had a noticeably less increase incidence of dry eye. A tear production rate evaluation is also necessary for patients with hypothyroidism in order to improve their prognosis for dry eye condition.

Keywords: Hypothyroidism (HT), Dry eye (DE), Schirmer Test (ST)