Dry Eye Disease
Dry Eye Disease (DED) is when your eyes don't make enough tears or the tears in your eyes evaporate too quickly, causing discomfort, irritation, or blurry vision.
Dry Eye Disease can cause a range of signs and symptoms, often affecting the comfort and function of the eyes, these include:
- Irritation or grittiness: Feeling like something is in your eye, like sand or dust.
- Stinging or burning: A sharp or warm sensation in the eyes.
- Dryness: Eyes feeling parched or not moist enough.
- Redness: Eyes looking bloodshot or inflamed.
- Blurry vision: Trouble seeing clearly, especially during tasks like reading or using screens.
- Watery eyes: Paradoxically, eyes may tear up a lot as a reflex to the dryness.
- Sensitivity to light: Discomfort in bright environments or sunlight.
- Eye fatigue: Eyes feeling tired or heavy, especially after prolonged focus.
- Discomfort with contact lenses: Lenses feel uncomfortable or hard to wear.
- Mucus around eyes: Stringy or sticky discharge in or around the eyes.
These symptoms can vary in intensity and may worsen in certain environments, like windy or air-conditioned spaces, or with prolonged screen time. If you experience these symptoms discuss with your doctor whether Perfluorohexyloctane eye drops are right for you.
The majority of diagnosed dry eye patients fail to get a satisfactory response with current treatments. Over 60% of patients using currently approved drug therapies in the U.S. discontinue their treatment within 12 months of initiation. In particular, eye irritation and lack of efficacy are considered to be key reasons for the high discontinuation rates.
In addition to dryness-related symptoms, impairment of visual function plays a significant role in the reduction of work productivity and patients’ health-related quality of life. Eye surface damage leads to visual symptoms that affect functions such as reading, looking at screen displays, driving, and night vision.
Two major sub-categories of DED exist: aqueous tear-deficient and evaporative. Aqueous tear-deficient DED is marked by reduced tear volume while evaporative DED is caused by Meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD).
To understand DED, the underlaying causes and effects on the different physiological layers of the tear film and the ocular surface tissues have to be considered:
- Tear film instability due to altered lipid layer
- Tear film instability due to altered tear volume and composition
- Meibomian gland dysfunction due to abnormal lipid secretion or obstruction
- Mucin dysfunction due to damage
- Epithelium dysfunction due to inflammation
- Nerve dysfunction due to degeneration
- Inflammation is the key underlying driver of the disease as chronic immunologic processes have a pivotal role in the pathology of dry eye.
- An inflammatory response is a result from stress to the ocular surface, suggested as both, a cause and consequence of DED
- This inflammation can lead to a vicious cycle of inflammatory response and ocular damage
- Inflammation result from microtrauma, hyperosmotic stress, aging, environmental irritants, and systemic inflammatory conditions
- If left untreated or undertreated, DED progressively damages the ocular surface and may lead to functional vision impairments
Evaporative dry eye disease mainly occurs due to Meibomian gland dysfunction leading to a deficient lipid layer and increased evaporation rates. Secrets from the Meibomian glands are the sole source of the natural tear lipid layer.
Dry eye disease is initially marked by signs e.g., reduction in tear production, mucus discharge, fast tear break-up time, corneal fluorescein staining, and patient reported symptoms e.g., burning, irritation, redness of increasing frequency. Corneal staining is considered the most critical and relevant objective clinical sign.
More information about Dry Eye Disease
https://www.tearfilm.org/ckfinder/userfiles/files/Introduction.pdf
https://www.tearfilm.org/ckfinder/userfiles/files/Lifestyle%20challenges.pdf
https://www.tearfilm.org/ckfinder/userfiles/files/Digital%20environment.pdf
https://www.tearfilm.org/ckfinder/userfiles/files/Nutrition.pdf
https://www.tearfilm.org/ckfinder/userfiles/files/Executive%20Summary.pdf
Prescriber information
Manufacturer links:
https://www.novaliq.com/products/novatears/