TY - JOUR
T1 - Reduced tear fluid production in neurological diseases
T2 - a cohort study in 708 patients
AU - Luib, Elena
AU - Demleitner, Antonia F.
AU - Cordts, Isabell
AU - Westenberg, Erica
AU - Rau, Petra
AU - Pürner, Dominik
AU - Haller, Bernhard
AU - Lingor, Paul
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2023.
PY - 2024/4
Y1 - 2024/4
N2 - Background: Tear fluid (TF) production is an important component of normal ocular function. It is regulated by parasympathetic and sympathetic innervation. Because parasympathetic nerve fibers originate in the brainstem, pathology in this brain region may affect TF production. For example, a reduction in TF production has been described in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). Methods: TF was collected at one center from 772 individuals, 708 of which were patients with different neurological diseases, and 64 healthy controls. Wetting lengths (WL) were recorded using Schirmer test strips with a collection time of 10 min. Results: WL correlated negatively with age and was significantly reduced in subgroups of patients with neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs) (PD, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), other motor neuron diseases (MNDs)), as well as inflammatory/autoimmune/infectious central nervous system (CNS) diseases and vascular CNS diseases (VCDs), even if corrected for age or sex. While temperature had a significant negative effect on TF production, other environmental factors, such as hours of sunlight and humidity, did not. Conclusion: WL was altered in many neurological diseases compared to healthy controls. Most importantly, we observed a reduction of WL in NDDs, independent of age or sex. This study highlights the potential of WL as an easily obtainable parameter and suggests functional alterations in the autonomic innervation in various neurological disorders.
AB - Background: Tear fluid (TF) production is an important component of normal ocular function. It is regulated by parasympathetic and sympathetic innervation. Because parasympathetic nerve fibers originate in the brainstem, pathology in this brain region may affect TF production. For example, a reduction in TF production has been described in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). Methods: TF was collected at one center from 772 individuals, 708 of which were patients with different neurological diseases, and 64 healthy controls. Wetting lengths (WL) were recorded using Schirmer test strips with a collection time of 10 min. Results: WL correlated negatively with age and was significantly reduced in subgroups of patients with neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs) (PD, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), other motor neuron diseases (MNDs)), as well as inflammatory/autoimmune/infectious central nervous system (CNS) diseases and vascular CNS diseases (VCDs), even if corrected for age or sex. While temperature had a significant negative effect on TF production, other environmental factors, such as hours of sunlight and humidity, did not. Conclusion: WL was altered in many neurological diseases compared to healthy controls. Most importantly, we observed a reduction of WL in NDDs, independent of age or sex. This study highlights the potential of WL as an easily obtainable parameter and suggests functional alterations in the autonomic innervation in various neurological disorders.
KW - Neurodegeneration
KW - Neurological diseases
KW - Tear fluid
KW - Wetting length
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85178935383&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s00415-023-12104-3
DO - 10.1007/s00415-023-12104-3
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85178935383
SN - 0340-5354
VL - 271
SP - 1824
EP - 1836
JO - Journal of Neurology
JF - Journal of Neurology
IS - 4
ER -