Top 5 Dry Eye Articles of 2022
1. Dry Eye Care is Whole Body Care
By Laura M. Periman, MD
When we consider the updated definition of dry eye disease (DED) from 2017 TFOS DEWS II, we often focus on the first section and perhaps less on the second section, which contains a key term: neurosensory compromise. The committee wrote, “Dry eye is a multifactorial disease of the ocular surface characterized by a loss of homeostasis of the tear film and accompanied by ocular symptoms, in which tear film instability and hyperosmolarity, ocular surface inflammation and damage and neurosensory abnormalities play etiologic roles.”
2. A COVID Long Hauler Struggles with Dry Eye
Kambiz Silani, OD
I recently treated a 73-year-old retired female patient who had been hospitalized for several months with COVID-19 and continued to experience “long COVID” symptoms long after her May 2021, discharge from the hospital. Her medical and ocular history included cataract surgery in 2000 and diagnoses of Crohn’s disease, hypercholesterolemia, hypertension, and thyroid disease (controlled with medications). Ocular surface disease ran in the family; she recalled watching both her grandmother and her mother (who had recently died from COVID) struggle with dry eye, and she worried this would be her fate, as well.
3. Light After the Storm: A Hopeful Look Ahead for Dry Eye Disease
By Laura M. Periman, MD
To treat a multifactorial condition like dry eye disease (DED), we need a multidisciplinary approach. Every new medication or therapeutic procedure is a new ray of light that improves our ability to provide targeted, directed, and comprehensive treatments for all facets of DED. New and emerging therapies address the underlying inflammatory mechanisms of DED and the consequences on the cornea, nerves, goblet cells, and meibomian glands that in turn contribute to an unstable tear film. The clouds of frustration are clearing for patients with DED and the future looks bright.
4. Contoured Prism Lenses Relieve Headache, Eye Strain, and Dry Eye Sensation
By Jeffrey P. Krall, OD
As digital device use grows, the symptoms associated with it—such as headaches, neck pain, eyestrain, and dry eye sensation—are increasingly relevant to eye care.1 Reducing screen time and minimizing blue light exposure are often recommended to patients who present with some or all of these symptoms. However, 2 decades of my own research and anecdotal experience—coupled with compelling findings from a recent study—suggest that those strategies, although helpful, are insufficient. Proprioceptive feedback, which is closely related to eye movement and binocularity, can be the source of these symptoms; and contoured prism lenses can be an effective, efficient, and life-changing solution.
5. Hyaluronic Acid and Trehalose: New Combination for Treating Dry Eye Disease
By Kambiz Silani, OD
In our dry eye clinic, we offer multifaceted therapy, relying heavily on the latest in-office procedures (Intense Pulsed Light [IPL], thermal pulsation, eyelid debridement, gland probing and amniotic membrane), complemented by medications, supplements, and at-home care. We also recommend lubricating eye drops that combine 2 key ingredients: hyaluronic acid (HA) and trehalose for symptom relief.
