Department of Biology and Medical Parasitology, Wroclaw Medical University, Wroclaw, Poland.
Department of Infectious Diseases, Wroclaw Medical University, Wroclaw, Poland.
Arch Med Sci. 2014 May 12;10(2):319-24. doi: 10.5114/aoms.2014.42585. Epub 2014 May 13.
The pathologic relevance of Demodex infestation in blepharitis is still controversial. The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence of Demodex spp. in eyelash follicles and its relationship to eye symptoms.
A total of 290 individuals were studied for the presence of Demodex folliculorum and Demodex brevis within eyelash follicles. Participants belonged to one of four groups: inpatients, drug abusers, health professionals, and medical students. Ten eyelashes were epilated from each subject, placed on microscope slides and examined for parasites. The sample was defined as positive if at least one parasite or parasite's ova were present. The presence of parasites was analyzed according to age, gender, place of living, reported eye problems, and use of contact lenses or glasses.
The prevalence of Demodex spp. infestation among all studied subjects was 41%, with the highest infestation rate among inpatients (p < 0.01) and elderly people (p < 0.001). No difference regarding the presence of Demodex was found between women and men (p = 0.76). Demodex folliculorum was about 2.4 times more frequent than D. brevis. The prevalence of Demodex spp. in subjects with and without eye complaints suggesting blepharitis was similar (41.6% vs. 40.2%, respectively, p = 0.9). On the other hand, wearing glasses was linked to Demodex infestation (48.4% vs. 32.3%, p < 0.01).
Demodex is a common saprophyte found in human eyelash follicles. Its presence might be related to some ocular discomfort; however, in the vast majority of cases the infestation seems to be asymptomatic.
螨虫感染与睑缘炎的病理相关性仍存在争议。本研究旨在确定睫毛毛囊中蠕形螨属的流行率及其与眼部症状的关系。
共对 290 名个体进行了研究，以确定睫毛毛囊中毛囊蠕形螨和短蠕形螨的存在。参与者分为四组：住院患者、药物滥用者、卫生专业人员和医学生。从每位受试者中拔出 10 根睫毛，将其放在显微镜载玻片上，并检查寄生虫。如果至少有一个寄生虫或寄生虫卵存在，则认为样本为阳性。根据年龄、性别、居住地点、报告的眼部问题以及是否使用隐形眼镜或眼镜，分析寄生虫的存在情况。
所有研究对象中螨虫感染的流行率为 41%，住院患者（p<0.01）和老年人（p<0.001）的感染率最高。女性和男性之间螨虫的存在没有差异（p=0.76）。毛囊蠕形螨的感染率约为短蠕形螨的 2.4 倍。有和没有提示睑缘炎的眼部不适症状的受试者中，螨虫感染的流行率相似（分别为 41.6%和 40.2%，p=0.9）。另一方面，戴眼镜与螨虫感染有关（48.4%与 32.3%，p<0.01）。
螨虫是一种常见的人类睫毛毛囊中的腐生物。它的存在可能与一些眼部不适有关；然而，在绝大多数情况下，感染似乎是无症状的。
