Attain Clear and Comfortable Vision with Dry Eye Treatment
Dry eyes can be uncomfortable, irritating, and painful, interrupting your daily life. But they can also be more than an annoyance. If left untreated, dry eye can cause damage to the surface of your eyes, potentially impacting your vision.
Whether you only experience dry eyes on a plane or during the winter, or you always suffer from uncomfortable symptoms, treatments and therapies can help refresh your eyes and provide long-lasting comfort.
The Eye Gallery’s Dr. Baldwin has years of experience in diagnosing and treating dry eye, and our clinic has added innovative technologies, including our IPL therapy, to provide targeted, effective treatments to improve your dry eye symptoms.
What Is Dry Eye?
Dry eye is a chronic, uncomfortable condition caused by an imbalance of the tear film. The tear film is made up of 3 layers: the oily layer, the watery layer, and the mucus layer. These layers work together to protect your eyes from infection, keep them clean of dirt and debris, and nourish them.
Dry eye can occur when any of these layers is not produced sufficiently. The most common cause of dry eye is lipid deficiency or evaporative dry eye, which accounts for over 85% of cases. In this case, the eyes don’t produce enough oil to protect the tear film from evaporation.
Dry eye can also occur when the eyes don’t produce enough tears overall. This is called aqueous deficiency dry eye, and can have various causes.
Common Symptoms of Dry Eye
Dry eye symptoms usually affect both eyes and can include:
- Stinging, burning, or scratchy eyes
- Sensitivity to light
- Blurry vision
- Eye fatigue
- Redness
- Stringy mucus in the eyes
- Excessive eye watering (a response to the irritation of dry eyes)
- Difficulty driving at night
- Discomfort while wearing contact lenses
Individuals with lipid deficiency may notice their symptoms starting in the late afternoon and worsening through the evening. Over-the-counter eye drops offer temporary relief, but discomfort often returns within 30 minutes.
Individuals with aqueous deficiency may notice intermittent dryness that comes and goes throughout the day.
What Causes Dry Eye?
Ultimately, dry eye occurs when your tears don’t provide sufficient moisture and lubrication for your eyes. There are many possible reasons why dry eye may initially develop, including:
- Meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD) occurs when the oil-producing glands in your eyelids don’t provide the quality or quantity of oil to prevent the tear film from evaporating quickly.
- Aqueous deficiency dry eye occurs when the eyes don’t produce enough tears to keep the eyes moist. This can be caused by underlying conditions, such as Sjogren’s Syndrome, as well as certain medications.
- Demodex causes toxic inflammation at the base of the eyelashes. This condition is caused by an overgrowth of microscopic mites that live around the lash follicles.
- Blepharitis is chronic inflammation of the eyelids, which can be caused by Demodex or other factors, and can lead to MGD.
How We Diagnose Dry Eye and MGD
Dry eye treatment depends on the underlying cause of your dry eyes. A detailed dry eye assessment allows us to determine the cause of your discomfort and develop a tailored treatment plan that targets the root cause of your symptoms for long-term relief.
We use the Oculus Keratograph 5M device to examine the tear film and meibomian glands in depth.
Part of diagnosing dry eye includes measuring the tear break-up time. This measurement determines how quickly your tears evaporate, as well as making sure the tear film covers the entire eye after each blink.
As well, we complete imaging of the meibomian glands to check for signs of dysfunction. Together with this information, as well as your reported symptoms, we can determine the root cause of your discomfort.
Our In-Office Treatments
Depending on the results of your assessment, we may recommend in-office treatments, take-home products, or a combination to help you manage your symptoms and find lasting relief. Our team works closely with you to find treatments that will be effective while remaining an appropriate choice for your lifestyle, personal preferences, and needs.
We are also happy to discuss specialty contact lens options with you if contact lens discomfort is something you have been struggling with. We can fit contact lenses designed specifically for dry eye, as well as large-diameter scleral lenses, which prevent evaporation and keep eyes hydrated with a saline reservoir.
Intense pulsed light (IPL) therapy uses targeted light energy to treat the skin under the eyes, relieving stubborn inflammation and clearing oil blockages in the meibomian glands of the eyelids.
IPL therapy is an effective treatment for lipid deficiency or MGD-related dry eye.
BlephEx is a powerful, in-office cleansing treatment that helps to clear bacteria, debris, and buildup on the eyelids and around the eyelashes.
BlephEx uses a handheld tool with a micro-sponge to cleanse and exfoliate the lashline. It is primarily used for individuals with blepharitis or Demodex.
Meibomian gland expression is an in-office procedure used to gently massage the eyelids to clear blockages and oil buildup in the meibomian glands. Meibomian gland expression can improve the flow of oil, restoring balance to the tear film and relieving symptoms.
Meibomian gland expression is used to treat lipid deficiency or MGD-related dry eye.
Punctal plugs are tiny, biocompatible devices about the size of a grain of rice that are inserted into the tear ducts to prevent your tears from draining too quickly.
Punctal plugs are primarily used for aqueous deficiency.
Amniotic membrane therapy involves placing specially formulated contact lens bandages made with amniotic tissue over the eyes.
These bandages contain key components that support natural healing processes and reduce the risk of scar tissue formation on the eye’s surface. Amniotic membranes are used in cases of moderate to severe dry eye when the surface of the eye has been damaged.
Our Dry Eye Products for At-Home Care
There are many at-home products available to help you care for your eyes and to soothe discomfort. From supplements like Omega-3-rich fish oils to preservative-free eye drops, eyelid hygiene products, and gentle beauty products for sensitive eyes, our team can help you find the right fit for your needs. Some products we recommend and offer for purchase include:
- Eye Promise EZTears Fish Oil
- Oasis Tears
- Oasis Heat Mask
- Mediviz Warm Compress Mask
- Avenova Hypochlorous Acid Spray
- Oasis Tea Tree Oil Wipes
- Bruder Eyelid Wipes
- Optase Hylonight Ointment
- twenty/twenty beauty Lash and Brow Serum
- Èyes Are The Story Mascara
Book Your Dry Eye Assessment in Wichita
Relief from dry eye begins with an accurate assessment and diagnosis. From there, your optometrist can recommend specific treatment options tailored to you.
If you are struggling with irritated, scratchy, or gritty eyes, don’t suffer in silence. Book your dry eye assessment with The Eye Gallery, and Dr. Baldwin will provide detailed care, advice, and treatment options to help restore your daily comfort.
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