Are your eyes constantly stinging, burning, watery, gritty or red?
These are some of the symptoms of dry eyes.
Tears are made up by the following components:
Lipid layer
Produced mainly by the meibomian glands which sit on the eyelid margin. These glands are responsible for producing the oily part of the tears (meibum) which helps to slow down tear evaporation.
Aqueous layer
(watery portion)
The aqueous layer is mostly water but also contains proteins, minerals and carbohydrates to help nourish the cornea.
Mucin layer
The foundation layer which helps spread the tears over the surface of the eye.
Dry eyes are due to the eyes producing an inadequate amount of tears and/or tears of poor quality (typically, it’s a combination of both).
FORMA-I FOR DRY EYES
Meibomian Gland Dysfunction (MGD) is present in about 85% of dry eye sufferers. It is the inability of the meibomian glands to produce or secrete quality oil (meibum). This could be due to an underlying hardening of these oils, which can lead to blockage of these glands. The result is a decreased production in meibum and an unstable tear film.
HOW FORMA-I WORKS
The Forma-I treatment delivers radiofrequency energy to gently heat the deeper layers of your skin to melt the blocked meibum. This is followed up by an expression of the meibum by your optometrist using a specialized paddle. Radiofrequency does a phenomenal job at unclogging and expressing oils from unhealthy meibomian glands, to target the root cause of MGD.
Commonly used in medical aesthetics to treat fine lines and wrinkles, we also expect to see some benefits with skin tightening over the course of your treatment protocol. The targeted heat stimulates migration of fibroblasts and the production of collagen.
Treatments are quick and safely performed in-office and treat the root cause of the problem. Treatments typically take 20 minutes and are followed up by a meibomian gland expression by your optometrist. There is no downtime associated with this treatment.
LUMECCA-I FOR DRY EYES
Lumecca-I represents a revolutionary approach to dry eye treatment through the use of Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) technology commonly associated with cosmetic dermatology for skin rejuvenation. IPL emits a broad spectrum of light that targets specific structures in the skin. Lumecca-I adapts this technology to address the underlying causes of dry eye syndrome. Along with your dry eye treatment, expect to see improvements with sun damage, age spots, rosacea and vascular lesions.
HOW LUMECCA-I WORKS:
Dry eyes often result from inflammation of the ocular surface. Lumecca-I helps alleviate this inflammation by targeting blood vessels and reducing the release of inflammatory mediators, creating a more balanced and comfortable eye environment. By addressing meibomian gland dysfunction and reducing inflammation, Lumecca-I contributes to improving the overall quality of tears. This helps to alleviate symptoms such as redness, itching, and the feeling of dryness.
IPL treats meibomian gland dysfunction, ocular rosacea and inflammatory ocular surface disease. It has also shown to help with decreasing the load of demodex and bacteria around the eyelids.
Lumecca-I is a non-invasive procedure. Patients experience minimal discomfort during and after the treatment and treatments are typically quick, lasting around 15 to 30 minutes. Multiple treatments are required to produce lasting effects.
In cases where conservative treatment options such as artificial tears and warm compress aren't successful, your doctor may recommend incorporating in-office treatments like Forma-I and Lumecca-I in combination with the at-home treatment.
You can see each layer of the tears plays a vital part in keeping the surface hydrated, smooth and healthy. Deficiencies in any of those can lead to poor quality tears and consequently dry eyes!
Treatment for dry eyes is complex and in a lot of cases requires multiple means of therapy.
The therapy will depend on the underlying cause of the dry eyes.
If you are experiencing constant watery, red, gritty, burning eyes please feel free to give us a call or use our super simple online booking system to book an appointment with our optometrist.