Definition and Diagnosis

The term meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD) was first used by Gutgesell in 1982, and used since then in clinical settings to denote conditions showing abnormalities of the meibomian gland function. MGD is the cause of symptoms in many patients who visit an ophthalmologist complaining of eye discomfort and is considered to induce a reduction in the quality of patient life. Although MGD is clearly a clinically important disease, clinical manifestations greatly vary, with only some cases involving inflammation and resident commensal bacteria, and it has received little attention in the clinical practice of general ophthalmology for the following reasons:

(1) Severity ranges widely from mild to severe.
(2) No definition or diagnostic criteria have been established so far in Japan.
(3) Few effective treatments currently exist.

Based on this background, a movement arose within Japan to establish the definition and diagnostic criteria of MGD, and the MGD Working Group (representative: Shiro Amano) was created under the direction of the Dry Eye Society (representative manager: Kazuo Tsubota) in 2008. Several general meetings of the MGD Working Group have been held so far to establish the definition and classification of, and diagnostic criteria for, MGD and to prepare reviews of test and treatment methods as follows. The results have been made available on the Dry Eye Society website.

Review of Testing

*The following PDFs are limited to Japanese.

Review of Treatment

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