Localized heat therapy outperforms cyclosporine in dry eye disease treatment

Localized heat therapy (LHT) is more effective than cyclosporine ophthalmic emulsion (CsA) in treating dry eye disease (DED), as demonstrated by the subanalysis of the SAHARA clinical trial. Regardless of gender, age, or the severity of the disease burden, LHT consistently outperformed CsA in improving key indicators of DED, including tear break-up time (TBUT), meibomian gland secretion score (MGSS), and conjunctival staining score (CSS).

Conducted as a prospective, multicenter, randomized, masked, controlled superiority trial, SAHARA enrolled 345 participants aged 22 years and older. Participants were randomly assigned to receive either LHT using TearCare or CsA administered twice daily.

Results from the analysis demonstrated that LHT consistently surpassed CsA in improving TBUT, MGSS, and CSS throughout the 6-month study period. Notably, LHT exhibited a substantially greater enhancement in TBUT, ranging from 44% to 65% more improvement compared to CsA, irrespective of gender or the reported severity of disease burden.

The superiority of LHT extended to age demographics as well. Participants over 65 years of age showed improvement in MGSS scores at week 1, month 1, and month 6, reinforcing the sustained benefits of LHT in managing DED.

Reference
Loh J, et al. Localized Heat Therapy (LHT) Compared to Cyclosporine Ophthalmic Emulsion (CsA): A Subanalysis on Age, Gender, and Disease Burden. Poster presented at ASCRS 2024.