Exploration of dry eye treatment plan for high-altitude military personnel
Objective To explore the efficacy and safety of modified meibomian gland massage combined with ultrasonic atomization and drug therapy for dry eye in high-altitude military personnel.Methods A total of 180 patients(360 eyes)with dry eye who were diagnosed and treated by the medical team of General Hospital of Central Theater Command of Chinese PLA from July to October 2022 in Linzhi,Tibet(average altitude of 3100 meters)were selected as the research subjects.Patients were divided into four block groups based on the course of the disease:<1 month,1-3 months,3-6 months,and≥6 months,and each block group was randomly assigned to control group,traditional group and modified group by random number table method,with 60 cases in each group.Control group received routine treatment(artificial tear drops and atomization fumigation);on the basis of routine treatment,traditional group underwent traditional meibomian gland massage,and modified group underwent modified meibomian gland massage.After 3 months of treatment,the scores of symptoms and signs,total effective rate,duration of treatment and incidence of adverse events were compared among the 3 groups.Results In the intra-group comparison before and after treatment,except for control group's symptom scores difference which was not statistically significant(P>0.05),all other scores decreased significantly(P<0.05).In the inter-group comparison after treatment,the scores of both traditional group and modified group were significantly better than those of control group(P<0.05),but no significant difference was observed in symptom and sign scores between traditional and modified groups(P>0.05).Compared with control group,the total effective rates of traditional group and modified group both significantly increased(P<0.01),but there was no significant difference in total effective rate between traditional and modified groups(P>0.05).The treatment time in modified group was significantly longer than that in control group(P<0.05),but significantly shorter than that in traditional group(P<0.05).The incidence of adverse events was significantly lower in modified group than that in traditional group(P<0.001).Conclusion In high-altitude areas,modified meibomian gland massage combined with ultrasonic atomization and local drug therapy for dry eye is safe and effective,non-invasiveness and easy to perform,and suitable for promoting and application in military field training.