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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2023 Jan 1.
Published in final edited form as: Ocul Surf. 2021 Nov 30;23:87–95. doi: 10.1016/j.jtos.2021.11.011

Table 4.

Spearman’s Rho (ρ) coefficients between sphingolipid pmole and dry eye (DE) symptoms and signs.

Spearman’s
ρ
DE Symptoms MGD/DE Signs
DEQ-5 OSDI Meibomian
Quality
Eyelid
Vascularity
Meibomian
Dropout
Meibomian
Plugging
TBUT Fluorescein
Stain
Schirmer
Test
MMP
In meibum (total pmole)
Cer −0.37** −0.38** 0.46*** −0.16 0.37*** 0.23 0.03 −0.02 0.32* 0.12
Hex-Cer −0.21 −0.25 0.40** −0.09 0.28 0.15 0.13 −0.15 0.37*** −0.05
SM −0.30* −0.32* 0.66*** 0.03 0.37*** 0.03 −0.08 0.0 0.15 −0.03
Sph 0.02 −0.09 0.13 −0.06 0.10 0.31* 0.02 0.06 0.22 0.19
Sa −0.21 −0.23 0.31* −0.28 0.17 0.23 0.17 −0.06 0.30* −0.03
SPL −0.27 −0.21 0.64*** −0.28 0.34* 0.20 0.003 −0.12 0.31* −0.02
In tears (total pmole)
Cer −0.12 −0.06 0.04 −0.09 0.15 0.09 −0.19 0.12 −0.42 −0.046
Cer/SM 0.08 0.08 −0.14 −0.01 −0.08 −0.11 −0.06 −0.006 −0.40** 0.04
Hex-Cer −0.10 0.005 0.17 −0.28 0.25 0.22 −0.18 0.21 −0.03 0.03
Hex-Cer/SM −0.02 0.07 0.07 −0.20 0.20 0.20 −0.007 0.18 −0.01 0.09
SM −0.20 −0.11 0.11 −0.14 0.23 0.16 −0.21 0.14 −0.33* −0.09
Sph −0.19 0.005 0.32 −0.32 0.20 0.18 −0.02 0.14 0.10 −0.14
S1P 0.18 0.31 −0.17 −0.08 −0.01 0.03 0.03 0.07 −0.003 −0.03
SPL −0.16 −0.05 0.07 −0.14 0.19 0.14 −0.19 0.14 −0.32* −0.07

DE=Dry Eye, SPL=total sphingolipid, Cer=ceramide, Hex-Cer=hexosyl ceramide, SM=sphingomyelin, Sph=sphingosine, Sa=sphinganine, S1P=sphingosine 1-phosphate, TBUT=Tear Break-Up Time, MMP=Matrix Metallopeptidase-9, OSDI=Ocular Surface Disease Index, DEQ-5=Dry Eye Questionnaire, ρ Rho=coefficient for dependent variables

*

Statistically significant difference at p-values <0.05

**

p-value <0.01

***

p-value <0.001.