TY - JOUR
T1 - Potential effect of epilation on the outcome of surgery for trachomatous trichiasis
AU - Talero, Sandra Liliana
AU - Muñoz, Beatriz
AU - West, Sheila K.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 The Authors.
PY - 2019
Y1 - 2019
N2 - Purpose: To evaluate the association of epilation before surgery on the surgical outcome in trachomatous trichiasis (TT) patients. Methods: As a secondary data analysis, 1452 patients enrolled in the STAR trial were categorized according to preoperative epilation status. The main outcome was recurrent trichiasis after surgery. We used multivariable analysis, time-to-event analysis, and Cox proportional hazards model. Results: Those who epilated prior to surgery tended to be older and female, with worse entropion at baseline. The proportion with postoperative trichiasis was 7.7%, 8.8% in those who epilated versus 5.3% in those who did not (P = 0.03). Adjusting for age and sex, the risk of postoperative TT with epilation was 1.71 (P value = 0.02). Although entropion may be in the biological pathway from epilation to postoperative TT, we adjusted for entropion, and the risk of postoperative TT with epilation was 1.41 (P = 0.14). Conclusions: The study suggests that preoperative epilation may increase the risk of postoperative trichiasis. Further research is needed to confirm the finding. Translational Relevance: Patients with TT often self-treat, epilating their inturned eyelashes. The World Health Organization recommends surgery to treat TT, but when patients refuse the procedure or mild trichiasis is present, epilation is often recommended. There is some evidence that repetitive or improper epilation can be harmful to the lid and hair follicles. If there is damage to the lid margin, any subsequent surgery could have deleterious outcomes.
AB - Purpose: To evaluate the association of epilation before surgery on the surgical outcome in trachomatous trichiasis (TT) patients. Methods: As a secondary data analysis, 1452 patients enrolled in the STAR trial were categorized according to preoperative epilation status. The main outcome was recurrent trichiasis after surgery. We used multivariable analysis, time-to-event analysis, and Cox proportional hazards model. Results: Those who epilated prior to surgery tended to be older and female, with worse entropion at baseline. The proportion with postoperative trichiasis was 7.7%, 8.8% in those who epilated versus 5.3% in those who did not (P = 0.03). Adjusting for age and sex, the risk of postoperative TT with epilation was 1.71 (P value = 0.02). Although entropion may be in the biological pathway from epilation to postoperative TT, we adjusted for entropion, and the risk of postoperative TT with epilation was 1.41 (P = 0.14). Conclusions: The study suggests that preoperative epilation may increase the risk of postoperative trichiasis. Further research is needed to confirm the finding. Translational Relevance: Patients with TT often self-treat, epilating their inturned eyelashes. The World Health Organization recommends surgery to treat TT, but when patients refuse the procedure or mild trichiasis is present, epilation is often recommended. There is some evidence that repetitive or improper epilation can be harmful to the lid and hair follicles. If there is damage to the lid margin, any subsequent surgery could have deleterious outcomes.
KW - Epilation
KW - Postoperative trichiasis
KW - Trachoma
KW - Trichiasis
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U2 - 10.1167/tvst.8.4.30
DO - 10.1167/tvst.8.4.30
M3 - Article
C2 - 31489257
AN - SCOPUS:85073388740
SN - 2164-2591
VL - 8
JO - Translational Vision Science and Technology
JF - Translational Vision Science and Technology
IS - 4
M1 - 30
ER -