Risk Factors for Dry Eye Syndrome: A Retrospective Case-Control Study.

PURPOSE: To investigate the independent risk factors of dry eye syndrome (DES) in Chinese. METHODS: A hospital-based age- and sex-matched population was enrolled with a case-control ratio of 1:2, with 789 DES case patients and 1119 healthy family members. Both groups underwent standard ophthalmologic examinations, including slit-lamp evaluation of the anterior segment, measurement of tear film breakup time, Schirmer test, and corneal fluorescein staining. Data on demographic characteristics and lifestyle habits were collected using a questionnaire. Dry eye syndrome risk factors were identified by univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. RESULTS: The following independent risk factors showed significant association with DES: diabetes (odds ratio [OR], 1.408; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.031 to 1.924), hepatitis C (OR, 3.326; 95% CI, 1.632 to 6.776); connective tissue disease (OR, 2.157; 95% CI, 1.679 to 2.771), benign prostatic hyperplasia (OR, 3.892; 95% CI, 2.476 to 6.116), rosacea (OR, 3.747; 95% CI, 1.972 to 7.120), posttraumatic stress disorder (OR, 1.449; 95% CI, 1.043 to 2.013), hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (OR, 7.269; 95% CI, 2.312 to 22.849), head and neck radiotherapy (OR, 8.776; 95% CI, 3.096 to 24.873), postmenopausal estrogen therapy (OR, 1.912; 95% CI, 1.160 to 3.151), antihistamines (OR, 2.040; 95% CI, 1.516 to 2.746), antidepressants (OR, 1.982; 95% CI, 1.077 to 3.647), contact lenses (OR, 2.366; 95% CI, 1.266 to 4.423), and video display terminal exposure for more than 6 h/d (OR, 2.275; 95% CI, 1.451 to 3.568). Potentially protective factors against DES were vitamin supplements (OR, 0.716; 95% CI, 0.528 to 0.972) and Ω-3 fatty acid-rich diet (OR, 0.514; 95% CI, 0.332 to 0.796). CONCLUSION: Several known risk factors of DES are applicable to Chinese, and some distinctive dietary factors may be protective in this population.

Paxillin regulates vascular endothelial growth factor A-induced in vitro angiogenesis of human umbilical vein endothelial cells.

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the role of paxillin in the vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF­A)­induced adhesion, proliferation, migration and capillary formation of endothelial cells (ECs) in vitro. Human umbilical vein ECs (HUVECs) were used to evaluate these four processes in vitro. The HUVECs were either mock­transfected (control), transfected with scramble small interference RNA (siRNA) or transfected with siRNA specifically targeting paxillin. VEGF­A (20 ng/ml) was used to stimulate angiogenesis. The VEGF­A treatment significantly increased the adhesion, proliferation, migration and tube formation of the HUVECs in the control and scramble siRNA groups, whereas the siRNA­-mediated knockdown of paxillin inhibited these VEGF­A­induced effects. Paxillin is essential for VEGF­A­mediated angiogenesis in ECs and its inhibition may be a potential target for antiangiogenic therapies.