Association between Signs and Symptoms of Dry Eye in Patients with and without Sjögren’s Syndrome

Introduction: To compare objective clinical signs and subjective symptoms of dry eye disease (DED) in patients with and without primary Sjögren’s syndrome (SS). Materials and Methods: This study included patients diagnosed with DED due to primary SS and patients with DED without SS (non-SS DED), all meeting the inclusion criteria at Helal Hospital (Tehran, Iran). Objective clinical assessments, including tear film breakup time (TBUT), Oxford corneal staining, tear osmolarity, and Schirmer’s test I, were conducted in both groups. Subjective symptoms were assessed using the ocular surface disease index (OSDI) questionnaire. Correlation coefficients were calculated using linear regression analysis. Results: This study was conducted from January 2023 to February 2024. Forty patients were included: 20 with SS DED and 20 with non-SS DED. The non-SS DED group had a significantly higher OSDI score (41.66±7.50) than the SS DED group (37.29±6.04; P=0.05). Tear secretion, measured by Schirmer I, was significantly higher in the non-SS DED group (P