Meibomian Gland Dysfunction and Dyslipidemia

Background: Dyslipidemia is a disorder that refers to abnormal value of one or more lipid types in the blood lipid profile. Meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD) is the abnormal condition of meibomian gland secretion which contains lipid components. We aimed to show the relationship between dyslipidemia and the severity of meibomian gland dysfunction. Materials and Methods: A total of 64 participants who live in Konya were included in the study. Participants were divided into four groups regarded as grade 0 MGD (n=16), grade 1 MGD (n=16), grade 2 MGD (n=16), and grade 3 MGD (n=16). For each patient, the grade of MGD, blood lipid profile and Marx Line (ML) were evaluated. Results: The mean age of 48,39 (range 25-65) years, 61% (n=39) were women and 39 % (n=25) were men. All groups were similar in age (p = 0.666) and gender (p = 0.978). There was a statistically significant difference in triglyceride (TG) between groups (p=0,029) and there was a significant correlation between increasing level of triglyceride and increasing severity of stage of meibomian gland dysfunction (r=0,377). There was no statistically significant difference in other types of cholesterol between groups (p>0,05). Also, there was a statistically significant difference in width of the Marx Line between groups (p<0,05). Conclusions: According to our study, dyslipidemia with elevated serum triglyceride and total cholesterol levels, is associated with meibomian gland dysfunction. Meibomian gland dysfunction might give the information about the presence of dyslipidemia.