Tuesday, July 2, 2013

New Recommendations for Dry Eye Syndrome Management

pink eyes from methsofhealing.com
Chronic Dry Eye Syndrome, also called "Keratoconjunctivitis sicca"

This is a major portion of the eye doctor's practice, especially optometrists because they fit contact lenses, and contact lenses tend to cause dry eyes.  The most common method to relief dry eyes is using eye drops.  Without proper management and prevention, this condition can worsen and significantly impact people's quality of life.

The risk factors for Chronic Dry Eye Syndrome are:
1. Age
2. Female
3. Medications - especially anti-histamines, birth control pills, anti-depressants and systemic medications for diabetes, inflammatory conditions and rosacea (red patches of skin which shows blood vessels on the surface of the skin).

Other factors include:
1. Computer use- it is common to find people using the computers 10-12 hours a day.
2. Environment - dry climates,winter dry eyes, or high altitudes due to lower humidity
3. Contact Lenses.- which can cause inflammation and damage ocular surfaces.

The International Task Force (ITF)for dry eyes recommend primary focus on clinical symptoms, but diagnostic tests can help assess which tear secretion maybe deficient- e.g. lacrimal glands that secrete tear volume, or lack of lubricants from meibomian glands.   Treatment modalities for them are totally different.

There is a new test for dry eyes - osmolarity tester and an as-yet-to-be-approved device that detects elevated levels of MMP-9, an enzyme which has been observed in the tear fluid of dry eye patients.  Since Meibomian Gland Dysfunction (MGD) occurs in a large number of dry eye people, eye doctors should also conduct a thorough evaluation of the eye lids.

The ITF guidelines are designed as a planned treatment that starts with artificial tears. A large portion of our patients are already on a drop (albeit the wrong drop and often times to reduce the redness), and this treatment is palliative at best. In a recent survey, almost 50% of all adults said they felt they had dry eyes, and 50% of these adults said they are treating it with artificial tears.

So why haven't these treatment modalities been working?  We get people coming to use who have tried everything, punctal plugs, prescription eye drops, gel drops, non-preservative eye drops, pulse heat treatment for MGD and more.

A major issue resides on the way the eye doctors are trained, use eye drops and treat it from the surface.  The fact is, more drops make your eyes drier- washing away the natural lubricants your eyes produce.  You probably have already experienced this, the more drops you use, the more you want to put more in.

healthyeyeTheraLife Can Help
TheraLife designed a capsule that addresses the basic reason why you have dry eyes.  It targets to normalize your tear secretion glands and revitalize them to secrete tears again, and reduce inflammation at the same time.  It is all natural and 100% guaranteed.  No expensive drugs that may have significant side effects.

ChronicSevereDEbundleLearn more
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This is a brief summary from: Optometric Management, Volume: 47 , Issue: May 2012, page(s): 24 - 30 72

1 comment:

  1. New guidelines for chronic dry eye management includes a thorough evaluation of meibomian gland dysfunction. There are new tests that can assess the extent of dry eye damage. Learn more from TheraLife.

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