Meibomian Gland Alteration in Patients with Primary Chronic Dacryocystitis: An In vivo Confocal Microscopy Study.

Purpose: To evaluate meibomian gland (MG) alterations in patients with primary chronic dacryocystitis (PCD) by in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM), and to correlate the finding with clinical presentation.

Methods: Twenty-eight eyes with the diagnosis of PCD and their contralateral unaffected eyes were studied and compared with 27 normal controls. All subjects completed an Ocular Surface Disease Index questionnaire (OSDI) and underwent slit-lamp biomicroscopy examination, tear break-up time (BUT) measurements, fluorescein staining, Schirmer test I, and an IVCM examination of the MG. IVCM parameters, including the MG acinar unit density (MGAUD), periglandular inflammatory cell density (ICD), MG acinar unit longest diameter (MGALD), and MG acinar unit shortest diameter (MGASD) and their correlation with clinical data were analyzed.

Results: The mean MG expressibility scores, BUT values, and staining scores were significantly worse in eyes with PCD compared with the contralateral clinically unaffected eyes and controls (p < 0.05). A significant decrease in MGAUD was observed in PCD eyes compared with the controls and the contralateral clinically unaffected eyes. Conversely, the mean ICD and MGASD values were significantly higher in the PCD eyes. There were no significant differences in mean MGALD value between the PCD eyes and the contralateral clinically unaffected eyes. In addition, there were significant changes in the IVCM parameters in the contralateral unaffected eyes compared with the controls, including MGAUD, ICD, MGALD, and MGASD. All IVCM parameters showed a strong, significant correlation with MG dropout grades, MG expressibility, fluorescein staining scores, and OSDI values (all p < 0.05).

Conclusions: Patients with unilateral PCD demonstrated significant changes in MG as compared with the contralateral clinically unaffected eyes and controls. The MG function should be closely observed in these patients.