Ocular surface assessment in soft contact lens wearers; the contribution of tear osmolarity among other tests.

: Purpose:  To determine whether tear osmolarity contributes to the assessment of the ocular surface in soft contact lens (CL) wearers. Methods:  Prospective, case–control series in 44 CL wearers (28 tolerant and 16 intolerant) and 34 healthy subjects. Every patient underwent a thorough ophthalmic examination with a tear osmolarity test (TearLab System), conjunctival impression cytology and meibomian lipid sampling. Symptoms, break-up time (BUT), tear osmolarity, conjunctival expression of HLA-DR and meibomian fatty acid composition were evaluated. Results:  Tear osmolarity did not differ between controls and CL wearers (p = 0.23). Flow cytometry results expressed in antibody-binding capaci…