epidemiology

Last reviewed 01/2018

epidemiology

Prevalence of dry eye syndrome may range between 8-34% depending on the criteria used (1).

• around 25 to 30 million people from around the world are thought to be affected by DES (2)

It is more common

• with increasing age
• it is estimated that around one third people over 65 years are affected
• women than in men (2)

In 2014, NHS spent over £27 million on over 6.4 million prescription items for artificial tears, ocular lubricants, and astringents (1).

Reference:

• (1) Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin. The management of dry eye. BMJ. 2016;353:i2333.  
• (2) Phadatare SP et al. A Comprehensive Review on Dry Eye Disease: Diagnosis, Medical Management, Recent Developments, and Future Challenges.  Advances in Pharmaceutics 2015, Article ID 704946