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WHAT CAUSES DRY EYES?

If you have had dry eyes but yet have not become better despite using eye drops, it’s extremely likely that you suffer from blepharitis and/or meibomitis. This is a new scientific discovery. Years before, doctors said that there was no cure for dry eyes. But with this new discovery, innovative treatments have recently become available at The Eyeclinic by Dr Cheryl Lee. 

Common causes of Dry Eyes include:

Meibomitis and meibomian gland disease

More than 60 percent of dry-eye sufferers have meibomian gland disease (MGD)! MGD is not cured by drops which explains why many patients still have dry eyes after using eye drops as eye drops don’t treat MGD. It’s well-accepted that meibomitis is characterized by abnormal meibum secretions, differing from normal secretions in viscosity and/or color as well as physical composition.

Hypersecretion of meibum or oil happens during infrequent blinking while using digital devices or reading. Infrequent blinking causes less lubrication across the eyes, thus stimulating Meibomian glands to produce excessive meibum, resulting in blockage of glands overtime. Read More.

Blepharitis

This is inflammation of the eyelids, in which the eyelids become red, itchy and irritated. This is due to the overgrowth of bacteria along the lid margins. Read More.

Contact lens wear

Dry eye is a common complaint or adverse event experienced by contact lens users.

Refractive eye surgeries

Dry eye is the most common complaint or adverse event after LASIK.

Hormonal deficiencies or changes

Thyroid conditions and hormonal changes during menopause are also the common factors that are associated with dry eyes.

What are the symptoms?

What do dry eyes feel like? 

  • Gritty like there is sand in the eyes
  • Itchy and red eyes
  • Teary eyes
  • Blurred vision or light sensitivity which improves with blinking or lubricating eye drops
  • Tired eyes
  • Discomfort with contact lenses

What happens if we leave dry eyes untreated?

Not only is it uncomfortable and unattractive but more of concern is that in the long term it can cause damage and scarring to the cornea and conjunctiva. A natural, healthy tear film is essential to fight infection and to provide nourishment vital for clear vision. That is why you must not ignore the condition. You should find out the underlying cause of your dry eyes and get it treated properly.

New methods of diagnosis and monitoring

TearLab Osmolarity System

There have been many groundbreaking advancements in diagnosing dry eyes, and a comprehensive eye examination plays a crucial role in this process.

The EyeClinic is proud to be the FIRST in Asia to utilise TearLab osmolarity system for diagnosis of dry eye!

The TearLab Osmolarity System is the first objective and quantitative test for diagnosing and managing Dry Eye patients. It measures the salt content (osmolarity) of your tears to aid in the diagnosis of dry eye, in conjunction with other clinical assessments.

Tear osmolarity has been shown to have the best predictive value* for diagnosing Dry Eye Disease of any single test. Its chip technology tests a tiny sample of your tears to measure its salt content and the osmolaity number gives us a meaningful measure of the health and stability of your tear film.

Information is extracted from TearLab official website at http://www.tearlab.com/.

Tear film Analysis

According to the International Dry Eye Workshop, dry eye disease is a “multifactorial disease of the tears and ocular surface that results in symptoms of discomfort, visual disturbance, and tear film instability. It is accompanied by increase osmolarity of the tear film and inflammation of the ocular surface.”

With increased osmolarity of the tear film, the tear film less stable. We use the Placido disc videokeratology to measure the tear film stability. This is an automated and non-invasive way of measuring the tear film surface quality breakup time as a clinical marker for diagnosing dry eye disease.

As shown in the video, the non-dry eye result has an even colour throughout the video while the dry eye result had various colours showing up. The instability of the tear film is shown using the warmer colours. The breaking up of the cooler colours signify the breaking up of the tear film.

Studies have shown that automated measurement of the tear film surface quality breakup time is repeatable and non-invasive. It also has a high sensitivity and specificity to tear hyperosmolarity, which is a key feature of dry eye disease.

Treatments

Various treatments are available. A Dry Eye Screening Package can help to determine the type of treatment best suited for you.

  1. Eye-Light®
  2. Blephex
  3. Tixel® Dry Eyes
For appointment, please call us at +65 6235 5833 
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