To offer an overview of the pathogenic processes behind the link between ocular allergies and dry eye disease (DED), with an emphasis on how the first condition may be a risk factor for the second, was the purpose of this study. Recent advancements in the understanding of the pathophysiology of ocular allergy and DED allow for the identification of various interaction routes between these two diseases. Ocular allergy is a risk factor for DED, according to an increasing body of data. Ocular allergies, particularly severe keratoconjunctivitis, can have an influence on several critical processes of the DED vicious cycle, including tear film instability, ocular surface inflammation and damage, and neurosensory abnormalities.
Ocular allergies and DED are two frequent, important, symptomatic diseases affecting the ocular surface that are not mutually exclusive. They have certain clinical and biological similarities. To better appreciate the complicated interactions between these two disorders, it is necessary to analyse the very broad range of clinical problems encompassed in the term ocular allergy, as well as the relatively unknown characteristics of juvenile ocular surface physio-pathology and DED.
