Aims To use minor salivary glands’ flow rate (MSGFR) measurement in minor salivary glands (MSGs) autotransplantation for the treatment of severe dry eye disease (DED). Methods MSGs autotransplantations were performed in 18 eyes (17 patients) with severe DED. MSGFR were measured before operation. The upper or lower lip with higher MSGFR was selected as the donor site. Buccal mucosa was the back-up in cases labial MSGs showing markedly decreased MSGFRs. Two pieces of salivary lobules with the covering mucosa were harvested and transplanted to the recipient beds prepared in both upper and lower lids. Results The donor sites included lower lip in 12 eyes, upper lip in 5 eyes and buccal mucosa in 1 eye. Postoperative follow-up confirmed viable grafts in all cases. The overall subjective relief rate of DED symptoms was 58.8%, with Schirmer test values increasing from 0 mm to 4 mm (p<0.05). The mean preoperative MSGFR was 1.7 (range: 0.9–3.3) µL/min/cm2. ROC analysis indicated an outstanding discrimination power for preoperative MSGFR to predicate postoperative relief of DED symptoms (area under the curve (AUC)=0.948, p<0.01). The maximum sensitivity (100%) and specificity (72.7%) were reached at a cut-off of 1.785 µL/min/cm2. Patients with preoperative MSGFR >1.785 µL/min/cm2 showed greater improvement of Schirmer test values after surgery than those with MSGFR ≤1.785 µL/min/cm2 (p<0.05). Conclusion MSGs transplantation proved to be useful for treating severe DED. The amount of postoperative lubrication and the treatment effect were positively correlated with preoperative MSGFR. MSGFR measurement and donor-site selection should be critical steps before the operation. Data are available upon reasonable request. All data relevant to the study are included in the article or uploaded as supplementary information. All data relevant to the study are included in the article and they are also available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

中文翻译：

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唾液流速测量在小唾液腺自体移植治疗严重干眼症中的应用

目的 在小唾液腺 (MSG) 自体移植中使用小唾液腺流速 (MSGFR) 测量来治疗严重干眼症 (DED)。方法 对重度 DED 18 只眼（17 例）进行 MSGs 自体移植。术前测量 MSGFR。选择 MSGFR 较高的上唇或下唇作为供区。颊黏膜是唇部 MSG 显示 MSGFR 显着降低的情况的备份。收获两片具有覆盖黏膜的唾液小叶并移植到准备在上下眼睑中的受体床上。结果供区包括下唇12眼、上唇5眼、颊黏膜1眼。术后随访证实所有病例均存在可行的移植物。DED症状的总体主观缓解率为58.8%，Schirmer 测试值从 0 mm 增加到 4 mm (p<0.05)。平均术前 MSGFR 为 1.7（范围：0.9-3.3）μL/min/cm2。ROC 分析表明，术前 MSGFR 对预测术后 DED 症状缓解具有显着的区分能力（曲线下面积（AUC）=0.948，p<0.01）。最大灵敏度 (100%) 和特异性 (72.7%) 在截止值为 1.785 µL/min/cm2 时达到。术前 MSGFR >1.785 µL/min/cm2 的患者术后 Schirmer 试验值的改善大于 MSGFR ≤1.785 µL/min/cm2 的患者（p<0.05）。结论 MSGs移植可用于治疗重度DED。术后润滑量及治疗效果与术前MSGFR呈正相关。MSGFR 测量和供体部位选择应该是手术前的关键步骤。可根据合理要求提供数据。所有与研究相关的数据都包含在文章中或作为补充信息上传。所有与研究相关的数据都包含在文章中，也可根据合理要求从相应的作者处获得。