Published online Jun 15, 2024. doi: 10.4239/wjd.v15.i6.1234
Revised: March 5, 2024
Accepted: April 17, 2024
Published online: June 15, 2024
Dry eye syndrome (DES) after diabetic cataract surgery can seriously affect the patient’s quality of life. Therefore, effective alleviation of symptoms in patients with this disease has important clinical significance.
To explore the clinical effect of recombinant human epidermal growth factor (rhEGF) plus sodium hyaluronate (SH) eye drops on DES after cataract surgery in patients with diabetes.
We retrospectively evaluated 82 patients with diabetes who experienced DES after cataract surgery at Tianjin Beichen Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Nankai University between April 2021 and April 2023. They were classified into an observation group (42 cases, rhEGF + SH eye drops) and a control group (40 cases, SH eye drops alone), depending on the different treatment schemes. The thera-peutic efficacy, dry eye symptom score, tear film breakup time (TFBUT), basic tear secretion score [assessed using Schirmer I test (SIt)], corneal fluorescein staining (FL) score, tear inflammatory markers, adverse reactions during treat
Therapeutic efficacy was higher in the observation group compared with the control group. Both groups showed improved TFBUT and dry eye, as well as improved SIt and FL scores after treatment, with a more pronounced improve
rhEGF + SH eye drops rendered clinical benefits to patients by effectively ameliorating dry eye and visual impairment with favorable efficacy, fewer adverse reactions, and high safety levels. Thus, this treatment should be promoted in clinical practice.
Core Tip: Cataracts are a common clinical blinding eye disease with a high incidence among the older population. Phacoemulsification followed by intraocular lens implantation is currently the mainstream surgical method for treating cataracts and restoring visual function. However, patients with diabetes often have a higher incidence of dry eye syndrome (DES) after cataract surgery compared with nondiabetic patients because of factors such as less basic tear secretion and poor tear film stability, which seriously affect the patient’s quality of life. Therefore, the effective improvement of DES after cataract surgery in these patients is of great clinical significance. Considering the specific clinical application scenarios, the effect of recombinant human epidermal growth factor combined with sodium hyaluronate eye drops on DES in patients with diabetes after cataract surgery warrants exploration.