Comparison of Efficacy of Omega3 Fatty Acids with Vitamin A and Vitamin C in the Treatment of Dry Eye Syndrome

Background: Dry eye is one of major ocular surface disorders affecting millions of people. The chronic discomfort in these conditions interferes with the quality of life for a long period of time. A typical clinical symptoms of dry eye are ‘burning sensation', 'irritation', and 'ocular fatigue'. Hence the Aim of this research “To compare the efficacy of Omega3 fatty acids with Vitamin A and Vitamin C in the treatment of dry eye syndrome”.

Methods: The present study titled “Comparison of efficacy of Omega3 fatty acids with Vitamin A and Vitamin C in the treatment of dry eye syndrome” was conducted in VIMS & RC, Whitefield, Bangalore between January 2013 and July 2014 on the subjects who attended the outpatient department of Ophthalmology at VIMS & RC. This was a interventional and non-observational l study of 100 clinically diagnosed cases of dry eye syndrome after informed consent which satisfied the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Dry eye syndrome diagnosis and severity level of diseases was determined with OSDI scoring, TBUT, Schirmer’s test 1 & 2, Rose Bengal Test and TMH.

Results: Results showed that lesser grade of dry eye is seen in patients with higher education, younger age group and with indoor jobs as compared to patients with outdoor jobs who had higher grade of dry eye in our study groups. Improvement was observed in TBUT, Schirmer’1 & 2, Rose Bengal, OSDI score and grade of dry eye in both 2nd study group (CMC + Omega 3 fatty acids) and 3rd study group ( CMC+ Vitamin A&C) as compared to the control group.(P<0.001) This improvement was more significant in 2nd study group as compared to 3rd study group.

Conclusion: It was observed that dry eye syndrome was more significantly improved in group2 (CMC + Omega 3 fatty acids) as compared to groups 3( CMC + Vitamin A&C). It was concluded using oral supplementation of omega 3 fatty acids or vitamin A & C would be beneficial for patients suffering from dry eye syndrome.