文献类型：期刊文献

英文题名：Clinical significance of corneal confocal microscopy characteristics and inflammatory cytokines in Sjogren's syndrome-related dry eye disease

作者：Yang, Kan[1];Jiang, Lei[1];Su, Nan[1];Chang, Jialiang[2];Liang, Wei[1];Fu, Songquan[3];Du, Xingpan[4]

第一作者：Yang, Kan

通信作者：Yang, K[1]

机构：[1]Lanzhou First Peoples Hosp, Dept Ophthalmol, 1 Wujiayuan West St, Lanzhou 730050, Gansu, Peoples R China;[2]Lanzhou First Peoples Hosp, Lanzhou 730050, Gansu, Peoples R China;[3]Lanzhou First Peoples Hosp, Dept Geriatr, Lanzhou 730050, Gansu, Peoples R China;[4]Gansu Univ Chinese Med, Dept Ophthalmol, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu, Peoples R China

第一机构：Lanzhou First Peoples Hosp, Dept Ophthalmol, 1 Wujiayuan West St, Lanzhou 730050, Gansu, Peoples R China

通信机构：[1]corresponding author), Lanzhou First Peoples Hosp, Dept Ophthalmol, 1 Wujiayuan West St, Lanzhou 730050, Gansu, Peoples R China.

年份：2026

卷号：18

期号：1

起止页码：307

外文期刊名：AMERICAN JOURNAL OF TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCH

收录：;WOS:【SCI-EXPANDED(收录号:WOS:001681912900019)】；

基金：This study was supported by Natural Science Foundation of Gansu Province (23JRRA1460) .

语种：英文

外文关键词：Sjogren's syndrome; dry eye disease; in vivo confocal microscopy; inflammatory factors; dendritic cell density

摘要：Objective: To characterize the relationships between in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM) - derived corneal immune - neural metrics, and systemic cytokines and ocular surface findings in Sjogren's syndrome-associated dry eye disease (SS-DED), and to identify variables independently associated with SS-DED status. Methods: A retrospective case - control study was conducted (Jan 2019 - Jan 2022), including 120 SS-DED patients and 88 healthy controls. Corneal dendritic cell density (DCD), inflammatory cell density (ICD), and nerve fiber density (NFD) were quantified by IVCM. Tear break-up time (BUT), corneal fluorescein staining (FL), Schirmer test, and Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) were assessed using standard protocols. Variables independently associated with SS-DED were identified using multivariable logistic regression, and their discrimination performance was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. Results: Compared to controls, SS-DED patients showed significantly higher levels of IL-1 beta, IL-6, TNF-alpha, DCD, and ICD, and lower NFD levels (all P<0.001). DCD correlated positively with IL-1 beta, BUT, FL, and OSDI (P<0.05), while NFD correlated negatively with BUT and FL (P<0.001). ICD positively correlated with IL-1 beta, IL-6, TNF-alpha, and DCD (all P<0.001). Multivariate regression analysis identified IL-1 beta (OR=1.249, P<0.001), OSDI (OR=1.074, P=0.033), DCD (OR=1.411, P=0.002), and ICD (OR=1.006, P=0.018) as independent factors associated with SS-DED. Among them, DCD demonstrated the highest discriminative power (AUC=0.886; specificity 98.75%; sensitivity 65.00%). Conclusion: Elevated IL-1 beta, OSDI, DCD, and ICD levels are independent risk factors for SS-DED. Among these factors, DCD exhibited superior predictive performance over the others and may be a biomarker for SS-DED diagnosis and disease monitoring.