Dry Eye Clinic
AT EYE CLINIC LONDON
What is dry eye?
IN THIS VIDEO I PROVIDE A BRIEF EXPLANATION
How Our Dry Eye Clinic Works
FOCUS ON WHAT MATTERS MOST IN 3 EASY STEPS
STEP THREE: DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT
At Eye Clinic London we have a range of treatments depending on your symptoms and the health of your eyes.
IPL course – £995
IPL one-off – £250
IPL Eyes & Face course – £1300
IPL Eyes & Face One Off – £350
Find out more about Dry Eye treatments
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About the expert
Mr Hamada | Consultant Ophthalmologist and Corneal Surgeon
MD, MSc, DO (hons), FRCSEd, FRCOphth I am Samer, founder and consultant ophthalmic surgeon with over 20 years’ experience in ophthalmology. I am a world-renowned specialist in cornea, cataract and refractive surgery. I’m not only a leading surgeon but also the only dual fellowship trained in corneal diseases in children from reputable institutions in the UK. At Eye Clinic London I work closely with other consultant ophthalmologists, optometrists and orthoptists to achieve the best outcomes for our patients. Our main aim is to make sure our patients get the safest and best treatments available to them. We put your safety before anything else so you can rest assured that if you choose us you will be in the best and safest hands.
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Dry Eye Disease
FIND OUT MORE ABOUT DRY EYE AND WHAT YOU ARE DEALING WITH
If you are suffering from sore, red, gritty, itchy, blurry eyes that are sensitive to light – you might have dry eye disease.
Here at Eye Clinic London, we offer our clients a range of treatments to help them with this common condition.
Dry eye disease or ‘dry eye syndrome‘ is a chronic condition that results from insufficient production of tears, when lacrimal glands (in the eyelids) cannot produce enough of the watery component of tears to maintain a healthy eye surface, or because of excessive evaporation of the tear film. This is usually caused by the failure of meibomian glands (in the eyelids) to produce enough of the lipid or oily part of tears that slows evaporation.
Many factors contribute to it, including:
- Contact lens wearing
- Dry or air-conditioned environments
- Immune-mediated diseases (such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and Sjogren Syndrome)
- Meibomian gland dysfunction
- Vitamin A deficiency
- Adverse effects of some medications like antidepressants, antihistamines, and hormone replacement therapy
Eye surgeries, such as cataracts or LASIK can cause disbalance in the ocular surface and result in patients experiencing dry eye symptoms. Affected individuals may experience irritation and redness of the eyes, blurred vision, and a feeling of a foreign body inside the eye. When the disease is severe, it can cause damage to the surface of the eye as well as irreversible vision loss and corneal perforation. The effects of dry eye disease can be severe, affecting the quality of life and vision-based activities such as driving and reading.
Most people with dry eyes experience symptoms that include dryness, soreness, burning and sandy-gritty feeling, often described as something that got into the eyes. This causes a tearing reflex and results in watery eyes, although it may seem contradictory. Some will notice a stringy discharge from the eyes.
Other symptoms such as sensitivity to light or blurry vision, can be experienced while participating in activities like reading, using screens, watching TV and driving. This is caused by insufficient blinking, which is necessary to cover the eyes with tears.
If you experience any of the symptoms above for a prolonged length of time, you must consult with a medical professional as soon as possible. Here at Eye Clinic London, we use non-invasive technology to access meibomian glands in your eyelids enabling us to measure the thickness and structure of the tear film layer and tear break-up time, so that our team can help you with choosing the most suitable treatment for you.
While dry eyes commonly were a problem prevailing in older people, especially women affected by menopause, the COVID-19 pandemic and following lockdowns have changed the demographics completely, with an ever-younger population and noticeably more men experiencing dry eye symptoms. Changes in lifestyle such as lack of time spent outdoors, working from home, increased use of screens and even regular use of face masks all contributed to an increased surge in the number of people suffering from dry eyes.
An estimated 344 million people worldwide are affected by this chronic disease. And recent studies by TFOS (The Tear Film & Ocular Surface Society) showed that 1 in 3 people in the UK experiences symptoms of dry eyes.
Although many dry eye sufferers can blame newly adapted changes of lifestyle for the cause of very unpleasant and sometimes painful symptoms of dry eyes, other more serious and complicated underlying health problems can cause dry eye disease.
One of the main causes of dry eyes is Meibomian Gland Dysfunction (MGD) which results in increased evaporation of tear film. This occurs due to the failure of meibomian glands (located in the eyelids) to secrete the oily outer layer essential for sustaining healthy tear film on the cornea of the eye. People diagnosed with MGD often suffer from clogged meibomian glands caused by mild inflammation due to Blepharitis or Rosacea.
In many other cases, symptoms of dry eye disease are typically caused by decreased tear production, when lacrimal glands in the eyelids don’t produce sufficient amounts of tears to keep the entire cornea of the eye covered. These are often associated with people suffering from Sjogren’ Syndrome, Lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, vitamin A deficiency, trachoma, and other autoimmune diseases.
Certain medications such as:
- Antidepressants
- Antihistamines
- Decongestant
- Oral contraceptives
- Nasal decongestants
- Beta-blockers
- Hormone replacement therapy
Can also contribute to decreased tear production resulting in suffering from dry eye symptoms.
Age contributes to the phenomenon of dry eyes in older people, as decreases in tear production are a natural part of ageing.
Additionally, contact lenses are known to absorb natural tears from the eyes leading to dry, sore and burning feelings. LASIK and other refractive surgeries often contribute to developing dry eye symptoms as a consequence of flaps made on the cornea where nerves stimulate tear secretion.
Effectively, environmental factors, such as dry, dusty or smoky places, can worsen or lead to dry eye disease.
Having dry eyes not only can dramatically affect the quality of life but most importantly it can lead to irreversible changes in the ocular surface of the eye, leading to corneal erosions, scarring, corneal ulcerations and corneal perforation and eventually resulting in vision loss.
Because of the complex nature of dry eye disease with its multifactorial causes, a series of clinical assessments and diagnostic techniques are performed by our team to diagnose the condition and establish the best management plan for our patients.
At Eye Clinic London, a bespoke treatment plan will be recommended based on a four-stage differential diagnosis:
- You will be asked to complete a Dry Eye Disease Index Questionnaire (OSDI) based on your current physical symptoms and a Lifestyle Questionnaire based on your social and medical history to uncover the root cause of the problem
- Meibography, a non-invasive technology, is used to determine tear breakup time (TBUT) and Lipid Layer thickness (LLT)
- Slit Lamp assessment is then performed using fluorescence (0.25%) and blue light to assess tear film quality and quantity, as well as observe eyelids, conjunctiva and corneal staining
- Lastly, meibomian gland expression is carried out to understand and measure the quality of meibum, an oily substance imperial for preventing tear film evaporation
Here at Eye Clinic London, we offer a wide range of effective dry eye treatments if you are suffering from dry eye symptoms. These may vary from traditional lubricating artificial tears and hot compresses with lid massage to the most efficacious treatment in the latest technology of dry eye treatments – Lumenis Optima M22 IPL.
If you want to know how Eye Clinic London can help you, please don’t hesitate to book a consultation today.
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