Prevalence of Dry Eye Disease among Patients with Depression in a Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital: A Descriptive Cross-Sectional Study

Introduction: Dry Eye Disease is one of the most common ocular diseases worldwide. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of Dry Eye Disease and its relationship with age group and gender among depression patients in a tertiary care teaching hospital. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted among 84 patients of depression from June 2025 to November 2025. Standard proforma was used to collect socio-demographic variables. Ocular Surface Disease Index questionnaire was administered to assess the dry eye symptoms. Dry Eye Disease was diagnosed if the Ocular Surface Disease Index score was ≥ 13 and was further classified as mild (13-22), moderate (23-32) and severe (33-100). The statistical methods used were mean, frequency and percentage. Chi-square test was used to test the association between dry eye disease with age group and gender. Results: The mean age of the study sample was 43.79 (SD±14.19) years. Females 63(75%) were predominant. The prevalence of Dry Eye Disease among depression patients was 29.76% (95% Confidence Interval: 20.27% - 40.73%). Among patients of Dry Eye Disease, mild 13(15.48%) was most prevalent, followed by moderate 10(11.9%) and severe 2(2.38%). Dry Eye Disease was significantly associated with gender but not with age group in depression patients.