You don’t have to live with burning, stinging, red, runny eyes. The experienced eye doctors at Cavanaugh Eye Center specialize in diagnosing and treating dry eye syndrome.
If left untreated, severe cases of dry eye can cause long-term eye problems, such as corneal damage. Professional treatment of dry eye syndrome is important to rule out more serious eye conditions that may mimic dry eye symptoms.
Dry eye syndrome, also known as dry eye disease or keratoconjunctivitis sicca, is a common eye condition characterized by a lack of sufficient moisture on the eye’s surface. Your body’s tears play a vital role in maintaining the health and comfort of your eyes by lubricating them and washing away foreign particles. When the eyes do not produce enough tears or when the tears evaporate too quickly, it can lead to dry, irritated, and uncomfortable eyes.
Dry eyes can be caused by a variety of factors including:
Understanding what is causing your dry eyes is crucial for effective treatment and management. If you believe you are experiencing dry eye syndrome, schedule an appointment with one of Cavanaugh Eye Centers’ dry eye specialists in Overland Park.
In addition to the factors listed above, one of the most common underlying causes of dry eye syndrome is meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD).
Meibomian gland dysfunction, or MGD, is a condition that leads to a decreased quantity and quality of the oil layer in the tear film. Meibomian glands are tiny glands in the eyelids that are responsible for producing the oily layer of tears that helps prevent rapid tear evaporation. When the meibomian glands become blocked or their oil production is compromised, it can lead to an unstable tear film and dry eye symptoms. MGD can result from factors like inflammation, bacterial overgrowth, or simply aging. Addressing MGD is often a key component of managing dry eye effectively.
LipiFlow® is a treatment performed in your doctor’s office designed to remove blockages from the Meibomian glands, allowing them to properly function and produce the oils that make up the top protective lipid layer of the tear film. LipiFlow® is supported by more than 30 patents with studies demonstrating its safe and effective results. It is designed to minimize patient discomfort during a 12-minute treatment that gently massages the eyelids.
LipiFlow® Activators are single-use sterile devices that safely and comfortably deliver a combination of heat to the inner lids and simultaneous therapeutic motion to the outer lids, removing blockages from the Meibomian glands. The Activators are contoured to avoid contact with the cornea, protecting the delicate structures of the eye.
Once the gland blockages are removed, the glands can resume normal oil or lipid production. This oil is essential for a healthy tear film, providing stable vision and ocular comfort. As normal gland function recovers, maximum results are usually experienced 8-10 weeks after treatment.
At Cavanaugh Eye Center, we strive to provide a variety of Dry Eye Syndrome treatments for our Kansas City area patients.
Dry eye may be treated with over-the-counter (OTC) products such as artificial tears, gel drops, overnight gels and overnight ointments. Artificial tears are one of the most common treatments for dry eye—some people need to put drops in several times a day while others may need to use them only once a day. Gel drops are a thicker eye drop formulation that creates a protective shield over the eyes for soothing comfort. Overnight gels are designed to provide long-lasting, nighttime protection from dry eye symptoms while you sleep. Overnight ointments form a smooth, protective layer for the eyes that provides long-lasting dry eye symptom relief at night. The benefit of thicker OTC products like gels and ointments is lasting lubrication, however, the disadvantages are blurred vision after application.
If you have mild dry eye symptoms, taking certain supplements might work for you. Omega-3 and omega-6 supplements, including the omega-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), have been studied as a treatment for dry eye and research has found that they can significantly reduce dry eye symptoms.
If you are diagnosed with dry eye, you might experience flares that last from a few days to a few weeks. To topically treat dry eye flares, steroids such as loteprednol etabonate or fluorometholone alcohol can be prescribed. Short-term steroid therapy knocks down the acute inflammatory response quickly and cools the eye.
Topical long-term maintenance treatment might include the use of products such as Restasis®, Xiidra®, or CEQUA™. They all work to help increase your eyes’ natural ability to produce tears by blocking a protein on the surface of cells that can lessen the amount of tears your eyes make or reduce the quality of your tears.
Oral treatments for dry eye include Doxycycline and Azithromycin. Both antibiotics have the added benefit of reducing inflammation around the oil glands of the eyelid in addition to their antibiotic properties, making them ideal for the treatment of eyelid inflammation and dry eyes.
Dry eye symptoms might be caused by inadequate eyelid hygiene. A lid hygiene routine including lid scrubs, warm moist compresses and massage, and/or hypochlorous acid sprays can help you maintain proper lid and lash health. Lid scrubs work by gently clearing bacteria, pollen, and oily debris that’s accumulated at the root of the eyelashes and they also help to soothe inflamed eyelids. With warm compresses, the heat liquifies the clogged oil in the glands and the massaging helps gently express the liquified oil. Hypochlorous acid sprays like Avenova® and Acuicyn™ help manage the bad bacteria on the eyelids that cause red, itchy, and inflamed eyes.
Puncta are the tiny openings that drain tears from your eyes. Punctal plugs are tiny devices (about the size of a grain of rice) that are placed in the eye’s tear ducts and stop fluid from draining from the eye. This helps keep the eye’s surface moist and comfortable, relieving itchy, burning, and red eyes.
The meibomian glands in your inner eyelids are responsible for releasing oils that help prevent tears from drying up too fast on your eyes. When there are blockages in the glands, you can end up with dry eyes. Using a technique called Vector Thermal Pulsation technology (such as Lipiflow, iLux, and Thermoflo), gentle heat and pressure is sent to the glands. This massages any blockages and liquefies and clears the obstructions that are causing dry eye symptoms.
For severe and recalcitrant dry eye, amniotic membranes are used. They are ocular grafts that are derived from the innermost layer of the placenta, which is rich in stem cells and can provide a damaged ocular surface with important regenerative properties. The amniotic membrane tissue in PROKERA® has natural therapeutic actions that help damaged eye surfaces heal. It simultaneously reduces inflammation on the surface of the eyes and promotes scarless healing of the cornea.
Scleral shell (or shield) is a comprehensive term for different types of rigid gas permeable scleral contact lenses. Scleral shells can be used to provide a moisture bath to the eye’s surface all day long. Scleral lenses are filled with an approved preservative free saline before being applied to the eye. The lens and moisture layer prevent the typical drying effects that occur while your eyes are constantly in contact with the environment. Scleral shells are very effective at treating moderate to severe dry eyes, are comfortable, and can also be used to correct vision.
