Purpose: We measured tear film parameters, including the morphology and function of meibomian glands, in junior high school students at 15 years of age.
Methods: A total of 111 eyes of 111 students (56 males and 55 females) were enrolled in the study. The ocular symptom score (0-14), after-school study time, lipid layer thickness (LLT) of the tear film, partial blink rate, lid margin abnormalities (0-4), tear film breakup time, corneal and conjunctival epithelial damage (fluorescein staining score, 0-9), meiboscore as determined by noncontact meibography (0-6), Schirmer test value, and meibum grade (0-3) were determined. The relationships between parameters were evaluated with the Spearman correlation coefficient (ρ).
Results: The meiboscore was 2.8 ± 1.2, and the meibum grade was 1.8 ± 1.2. The meiboscore significantly correlated with the meibum grade (ρ = 0.272, P = 0.004), Schirmer test value (ρ = -0.220, P = 0.021), and LLT (ρ = -0.264, P = 0.005). The breakup time significantly correlated with LLT (ρ = 0.261, P = 0.006), meibum grade (ρ = -0.338, P < 0.001), and fluorescein staining score (ρ = -0.214, P = 0.025). The partial blink rate significantly correlated with the Schirmer test value (ρ = -0.240, P = 0.011). The meiboscore (P < 0.001) and meibum grade (P = 0.032) were significantly greater in males than in females.
Conclusions: The morphology and function of meibomian glands are altered even at 15 years of age, with the changes being more prominent in males than in females.