Effect of Artificial Tear on Viual Acuity

Purpoe To tudy the effect of commonly ued preervative free artificial tear, carboxymethylcelluloe (CMC) 0.5% (Refreh Plu, Allergan, Irvine, California) on viual acuity in ymptomatic dry eye (DE) and aymptomatic dry eye (ADE) patient. Deign Nonrandomized propective clinical trial. Method Propective tudy involving 20 patient (40 eye) with DE and 20 patient (40 eye) with ADE, all 40 year and older, were recruited from a clinic etting over a 1-month period. Ditance viual acuity wa meaured by the Early Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy tudy (ETDR) viion chart and near viual acuity wa meaured by the Lighthoue Near Viion chart before and 30 econd after intillation of one drop of CMC. Ditance and near viual acuity wa meaured both with and without correction. The duration of action of CMC wa meaured at 1-minute interval until the patient’ viual acuity returned to pretear level. Reult In both DE and ADE group, uncorrected and corrected near and ditance viion howed a tatitically ignificant improvement after the ue of CMC (P < .05). There wa no tatitically ignificant difference in improvement between the DE and ADE group in all categorie (P value > .05). The mean duration of improvement of viion wa 2.93 minute in the DE group and 3.70 minute in the ADE group (P = .036). Concluion CMC 0.5% provide a temporary yet ignificant improvement in the viual acuity of DE and ADE patient. The effect of artificial tear on viual acuity may be of diagnotic value in detecting ocular urface abnormality in ymptomatic and aymptomatic patient.