Patients with this condition often experience irritating symptoms, which may result in more serious damage to the vision if left untreated. It is important for patients with this condition to take special care of their eyes in order to alleviate symptoms and prevent complications. Measuring the osmolarity of your tear film, involves assessing the concentration of particles, such as salt salts, in your tear film. High osmolarity levels indicated that the tear film is more concentrated, and the eye is dry. This test helps determine the ideology and the severity of your dry eye and aid in treatment planning.
Shermer testing indicates how much tear is produced over a specified amount of time. This test assists in differentiating between tear production etiology vs tear film quality or insufficiency etiology for dry eye.
Beginning Treatments for Mild Dry Eye
Treatments for dry eye, depend on the cause or causes of the patient’s dry eye syndrome, and on the severity of the symptoms. They will also be affected by the patient’s overall health, the health of their eyelid and skin, which can affect tear film quality, and the patient’s personal preferences. Many patients choose to start with non-prescription options, such as over-the-counter tears. Many need guidance on the safest products and finding the appropriate non-prescription lubricant that best address their condition.
Nutritional supplementation, such as with vitamins targeting the ocular surface, are recommended for many patients. We will provide guidance as to how to assess if oral vitamin supplementation fits a particular patient’s needs. There are many non-invasive or minimally invasive treatments for dry eye syndrome, which help alleviate symptoms and improve the condition of the ocular surface.