Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy of plasma rich in growth factors (PRGF) for the treatment of moderate/severe dry eye.
Methods: PRGF treatment was administered to 16 patients who had moderate/severe dry eye diagnosed and who had not responded previously to other standard treatments. We quantified several growth factors present in the PRGF of each patient and obtained quantitative registers of the symptoms (modified score dry eye questionnaire), both before and after PRGF treatment. We also performed impression cytology to determine the degree of squamous metaplasia before and after PRGF treatment.
Results: PRGF treatment was associated with a statistically significant improvement in score dry eye questionnaire values (P < 0.001). Results from impression cytology corroborated this improvement, but the reduction in the degree of squamous metaplasia was not statistically significant. In 75% of patients treated with PRGF, no further treatments were required, whereas in the remaining 25% other ocular treatments could be reduced.
Conclusions: PRGF led to symptom improvement in patients with moderate/severe dry eye. Surprisingly, the symptoms recorded in the dry eye questionnaire do not always agree with the degree of squamous metaplasia measured by impression cytology.