title: Efficacy of tear eosinophil cationic protein level measurement using filter paper for diagnosing allergic conjunctival disorders.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We investigated the efficacy of the tear sampling method using a filter paper to evaluate eosinophil cationic protein (ECP) levels in patients with allergic disorders.
  
  
  METHODS
  Subjects were an allergic group comprising patients with allergic conjunctivitis, vernal keratoconjunctivitis, or atopic keratoconjunctivitis, a Sjögren group comprising patients with secondary Sjögren syndrome, and a control group comprising healthy volunteers. Tears were sampled using the Schirmer Method I and the sample was eluted from the filter paper in 50 microL of elution solution containing phosphate buffer solution with 0.5 M NaCl + 0.1% Tween 20. Then the ECP concentration in the elution sample was determined by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Tear ECP level in the allergic group was significantly higher than the levels in the other two groups (P <.01 for the Sjögren group and P <.001 for the control). Furthermore, the tear ECP level of each allergic disease subgroup in the allergic group was significantly higher than that in the control group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This method of determining tear ECP concentration is useful not only to diagnose allergic conjunctival disorders but also to evaluate their clinical stages.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Nihon University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shoji
authors.forename: Minoru
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kitazawa
authors.forename: Noriko
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Inada
authors.forename: Mitsuru
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sawa
authors.forename: Tetsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ono
authors.forename: Masahide
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kawamura
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kato
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001798:Blood Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D003233:Conjunctivitis, Allergic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000378:metabolism*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D047091:Eosinophil Granule Proteins; D005136:Eye Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010209:Paper; D012260:Ribonucleases; D012859:Sjogren's Syndrome / Q000378:metabolism; D013048:Specimen Handling / Q000379:methods; D013666:Tears / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D001798:Blood Proteins; D047091:Eosinophil Granule Proteins; D005136:Eye Proteins; C042434:tear proteins; D012260:Ribonucleases