ArticleClinical & experimental ophthalmology
Dry eye symptoms and signs in United States Gulf War era veterans with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome.
Article in Clinical & experimental ophthalmology. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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9 authors at 5 institutions in 1 country.
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Abstract
backgroundTo examine ocular symptoms and signs of veterans with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) diagnosis, ME/CFS symptoms, and controls.
methodsThis was a prospective, cross-sectional study of 124 South Florida veterans in active duty during the Gulf War era. Participants were recruited at an ophthalmology clinic at the Miami Veterans Affairs Hospital and evaluated for a diagnosis of ME/CFS, or symptoms of ME/CFS (intermediate fatigue, IF) using the Canadian Consensus criteria. Ocular symptoms were assessed via standardised questionnaires and signs via comprehensive slit lamp examination. Inflammatory blood markers were analysed and compared across groups.
resultsMean age was 55.1 ± 4.7 years, 88.7% identified as male, 58.1% as White, and 39.5% as Hispanic. Ocular symptoms were more severe in the ME/CFS (n = 32) and IF (n = 48) groups compared to controls (n = 44) across dry eye (DE; Ocular Surface Disease Index [OSDI]: 48.9 ± 22.3 vs. 38.8 ± 23.3 vs. 19.1 ± 17.8, p < 0.001; 5 item Dry Eye Questionnaire [DEQ-5]: 10.8 ± 3.9 vs. 10.0 ± 4.6 vs. 6.6 ± 4.2, p < 0.001) and pain-specific questionnaires (Numerical Rating Scale 1-10 [NRS] right now: 2.4 ± 2.8 vs. 2.4 ± 2.9 vs 0.9 ± 1.5; p = 0.007; Neuropathic Pain Symptom Inventory modified for the Eye [NPSI-E]: 23.0 ± 18.6 vs. 19.8 ± 19.1 vs. 6.5 ± 9.0, p < 0.001). Ocular surface parameters and blood markers of inflammation were generally similar across groups.
conclusionIndividuals with ME/CFS report increased ocular pain but similar DE signs, suggesting that mechanisms beyond the ocular surface contribute to symptoms.
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