What is dry eye?
Dry eye is a common condition that occurs when your tears aren’t able to provide adequate lubrication for your eyes, due to a reduction in the quality or quantity of tears. This tear film comprises three layers that work together to keep your eyes moist and protected. The top oily layer helps to prevent evaporation of tears. The middle, watery layer is the thickest layer and the sticky bottom layer helps the tear film to adhere to the eye. If anything upsets the balance of these tear film components it can become unstable or evaporate. This results in dryness and inflammation of the cornea (front of the eye).
What treatment is available?
MY Eye Clinic are delighted to introduce a new cutting-edge IPL treatment for dry eyes. Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) treatment is the first and only FDA-approved treatment for evaporative dry eye disease, and is now available at MY Eye Clinic.
OptiLIGHT IPL is the latest machine to be introduced in our clinic offering treatment for dry eye disease (DED) and meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD), as well as many dermatological conditions such as rosacea, acne and skin pigmentation.
A full OptiLIGHT IPL treatment plan includes four sessions with a senior, fully accredited corneal consultant, spaced 2 – 3 weeks apart, followed by maintenance sessions every six months.
Meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD) is the leading cause of dry eye disease. The most common symptoms include gritty, sore, itchy, red and uncomfortable eyes. It can feel as if there is a foreign body in your eye. Although lubricating eye drops can help manage the symptoms, OptiLight IPL actually treats, and even cures, dry eyes. This allows patients to reduce or stop taking lubricating eye drops.
The OptiLIGHT IPL uses patented Lumenis Optimal Pulse Technology for targeted, precise, controlled treatment. This new light therapy is not a laser, but instead it is an intense white light source. It offers a clinically proven, effective and safe treatment. Patients undergoing IPL can expect to regain comfortable, clearer, brighter, more moist eyes without pain and puffy red thickened eyelids. Each IPL session is cumulative in effect.
If you suffer from dry eye disease, ocular rosacea or meibomian gland dysfunction, don’t leave it too long to seek treatment. The OptiLIGHT IPL could address and break the dry eye vicious circle of inflammation.
MY Eye Clinic is the only medical facility in the North East offering OptiLIGHT IPL for the treatment of dry eyes; only a few clinics outside of London can offer this latest FDA-approved treatment.
