Validation of Alternative Methods for Detecting Meibomian Gland Dropout Without an Infrared Light System: Red Filter for Simple and Effective Meibography.

Purpose: To evaluate the validity and reliability of alternative methods for evaluating meibomian gland (MG) dropout without using an infrared light system: red-filtered or isolated red-channel images (RCIs) of the everted eyelid.

Methods: We evaluated MG dropout in the everted upper and lower eyelids of 125 eyes of 64 patients with good-quality infrared meibography images (IMIs) and color digital photographs with and without a red filter. Red-filtered images (RFIs) were converted to black and white and adjusted for contrast/brightness [adjusted red-filtered images (aRFIs)].