VITAMIN D AND DRY EYES

Patients suffering from dry eye may find relief with vitamin D supplementation, according to a review and meta-analysis published recently in Contact Lens and Anterior Eye. Researchers from China explained in their paper that vitamin D “deficiency exacerbates the ocular inflammatory response in patients with chronic dry eye.  They added that deficient levels of this vitamin may also affect nerve fibers, resulting in worse symptoms of ocular pain or foreign body sensation.

Upon analysis, the researchers found that vitamin D supplementation significantly improved tear production by Schirmer testing and tear film stability by tear break-up time and reduced lid hyperemia, and OSDI scores.