Comparison between signs and symptoms with the IgE levels in tears, in patients with allergic conjunctivitis

Abstract

For a long time, allergic conjunctivitis has been only diagnosed in a clinical way, that is, taking into account the signs and symptoms a patient has, without any complementary diagnostic aids to improve a better and more precise diagnosis. Therefore, it has run the risk to diagnose other pathologic alterations and treat them as if they were allergic conjunctivitis without satisfactory results for the patient. The purpose of this study was to diagnose allergic conjunctivitis in a quantitative way through the presence of Immunoglobuline E (IgE) in tears in patients with signs and symptoms of ocular allergy. <em><strong>Methods:</strong></em> 35 symptomatic patients that went to the Optometric Research Institute of Universidad de La Salle and they were made an optometric and ophthalmologic examination, and the levels of IgE in tears by the Lacrytest were determined. The results were compared based on signs and symptoms they had. <em><strong>Results:</strong></em> 40% of patients were positive to the Lacrytest. Patients with allergic conjunctivitis and high levels of IgE were related to the severity in signs and symptoms, mainly papillas, hyperemia, ardor, red eye and pruritus. Conclusions: when making comparison of symptoms between positive and negative patients for IgE, there were similar symptoms, which corroborates that it is indispensable to make confirmative tests in order to reach the most appropriate diagnostic of allergic conjunctivitis.