The effect of prematurity on tear production

Purpose. To evaluate the effect of the birth weight and the postconceptional age on the tear production of preterm and term newborn infants and to evaluate the changes in tear production during the first two months of life. Subjects – Methods. Both eyes of medically stable term and preterm infants were included in the study. Based on postconceptional age and birth weight, we divided preterm infants into three groups. Then, we measured the basal and reflex tear secretions of both eyes by Schirmer tests before and after instillation of topical anesthetic agent. We performed initial tear measurements on the second day of life (between first 24 hours to first 48 hours after birth): and at 2 weeks, 4 weeks and 8 weeks after birth. Results. We tested a total of 138 infants (63 preterm and 75 term), 72 males and 66 females. Schirmer-1-test of preterm and terms on the 2 nd day of life revealed a mean basal tear secretion (BTS) of 4.8 ± 4.1 and 8.8 ± 3.2 mm, respectively (p < 0.0001). The mean reflex tear secre...