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Purpose : The aim of this study was to measure tear concentration of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF)-C in three subgroups of Sulfur Mustard (SM)-exposed veterans based on severity of ocular complications.
Methods : In this study, 75 SM-exposed patients, who were categorized based on severity of ocular manifestations to three subgroups, including mild (9 cases), moderate (17 cases), and severe (49 cases), were studied. Tear concentration of VEGF-C in three SM-exposed subgroups were evaluated using the Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) method. The Mann-Whitney U test was used in this analysis. Significance level was considered as P values less than 0.05.
Results : All study subjects were male and mean ± Standard Deviation (SD) of age was 44.94 ± 8.76 years. The VEGF-C tear concentration median and quartiles were: 39.06 ng/ml (Q1: 0.00, Q3: 111.11); 44. 64 ng/mL (Q1: 19.53, Q3: 67.31), 86.54 ng/mL (Q1: 23.44, Q3: 149.31), and 27. 34 ng/mL (Q1: 0.00, Q3: 104.17) in all SM-exposed patients, and mild, moderate, and severe subgroups, respectively. There was no statistically significant difference between subgroups (mild-moderate p=0.292; mild-severe p=0.785 and moderate-severe p=0.124), yet VEGF-C tear concentration was significantly (p=0.011) higher among those with abnormal conjunctival vessels.
Conclusion : Values of VEGF-C tear concentration were not significantly different between the three subgroups in SM-exposed group, yet, was significantly higher among those with abnormal conjunctival vessels.
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