Objective To investigate the effectiveness of preoperative atomized fumigation and meibomian gland massage on dry eye after cataract operation in patients with meibomian gland dysfunction（MGD）. Methods A total of 62 cataract patients complicated with MGD in our hospital were selected and assigned to observation group（preoperative atomized fumigation，meibomian gland massage，anti⁃inflammatory treatment，routine anti⁃ inflammatory treatment after surgery=31）and control group（preoperative and postoperative routine anti⁃inflammatory treatment，n = 31）. All patients were inquired with Ocular Surface Disease Index（OSDI）questionnaire，tear lipid layer thickness LLT，noninvasive keratographic tear break⁃up time NIKBUT，corneal fluorescein staining（CFS）， lidmargin，meibum quality and expressibility，and meibomian gland dropout before and after surgery. Results MGD in control group was aggravated 1 month after operation，and relieved 3 months later. In the observation group，OSDI，NIKBUT，CFS，blepharoplasty，meibomian gland secretion quality score and LLT were significantly improved after treatment（P < 0.05）. NIKBUT，blepharoplasty and meibomian gland secretion quality scores in the observation group were significantly higher than those in the control group after treatment，1 week，1 month and 3 months after surgery. Compared with the control group，the postoperative blepharoplasty hyperemia and meibomian gland orifice obstruction were significantly improved in the observation group（P < 0.05）. Conclusion MGD and dry eye were aggravated after cataract surgery，and preoperative treatment was effective in alleviating those symptoms.