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Objectives: Lid hygiene is a commonly prescribed first-line therapy in patients with lid margin disease, yet compliance with therapy is not well characterized. The goals of this study were to assess patient compliance with lid hygiene and evaluate which factors predict a favorable symptomatic response to treatment., Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of patients seen in the Miami Veterans Affairs eye clinic between August and December 2014. An evaluation was performed to assess dry eye symptoms and lid margin signs. All patients were then instructed to perform warm compresses and lid scrubs. A follow-up phone survey assessed compliance and subjective therapeutic response 6 weeks later., Results: Two hundred seven of 211 (98%) patients (94% male, 60% white) completed the survey. Of the 207 patients, 188 (91%) completed the follow-up survey. Compliance with therapy was reported in 104 patients (55%); 66 reported complete improvement, 30 partial improvement, and 8 no improvement in symptoms. Patients who self-reported dry eye symptoms at first visit (n=86, 74%) were more likely to be compliant with lid hygiene than those who did not report symptoms (n=18, 25%) (P<0.0005). The only factor associated with poorer response to lid hygiene was longer time of self-reported dry eye symptoms. None of the other signs studied, including the presence of skin rosacea and lid margin telangiectasia, were associated with a differential response to lid hygiene., Conclusions: Patients with dry eye symptoms were moderately compliant with lid hygiene, and patients who performed the routine noted improvement in symptoms.

Purpose: To study the epidemiology of meibomian gland (MG) dysfunction in an elderly, predominantly male population., Methods: Prospective study of 233 subjects seen in the Miami Veterans Affairs eye clinic. Patients underwent a complete ocular surface examination, including dry eye questionnaires and tear assessments (osmolarity, tear breakup time, corneal staining, Schirmer test). The main outcome measures were correlations between MG parameters and demographics, dry eye symptoms, and tear parameters. The studied MG parameters were eyelid vascularity and meibum quality; a score ≥2 for either parameter was considered abnormal., Results: Mean age of the 233 subjects was 63 years (SD = 11); 91% were male and 59% had at least 1 abnormal MG parameter (abnormal quality 55%; vascularity 17%). Demographically, patients with abnormal MG parameters were significantly older than their counterparts without these findings. Whites were more likely to have abnormal eyelid vascularity compared with blacks [n = 36 (31%) vs. n = 1 (1%), P < 0.0005] but no differences were noted between races with respect to meibum quality. Abnormal meibum quality, but not abnormal vascularity, was significantly associated with more severe dry eye symptoms. Similarly, abnormal meibum quality, but not eyelid vascularity, was significantly associated with worse dry eye signs, including decreased tear breakup time and increased corneal staining (P < 0.05 for all)., Conclusions: MG dysfunction is a frequent finding in an elderly, predominantly male population with racial differences noted in the frequency of abnormal eyelid vascularity but not in MG quality. Abnormal meibum quality was significantly associated with more severe dry eye symptoms and signs.