Many people complain about dry eyes. Lodovico Dubini has recently started offering an innovative treatment. Dry eye syndrome is an eye disorder caused by reduced tear production hypolacrimia , excessive tear evaporation or altered tear quality and composition dyslachrymia. Since Dr. Lodovico Dubini has been working with dry eye in his practice in Samedan.
What sounds like a general term is a recognised disease, known in international medical terminology as "Dry Eye Disease". Exposure to smoke, wind and dry climate can increase tear evaporation and cause symptoms of dry eyes. Long-term wearing of contact lenses can lead to dry eye.
Until recently, treatment was limited to the administration of drops to improve eye hydration. The results were unsatisfactory. According to Dubini, the reason for this is the inaccurate diagnosis and the corresponding summary therapy. First, the patient receives the OSDI questionnaire Ocular Surface Disease Index - , which allows the symptoms to be analysed and classified using an international scale of values.
The osmolarity test and the evaluation of the stability of the tear film with fluorescein allow a first assessment of dry eye. Hydra is the new tear film analysis tool that analyses all layers: lipid, aqueous, mucin. In this way we can identify the type of dry eye and determine which layers can be treated with a specific treatment depending on the type of deficiency. Hydra is also useful for follow-up, allowing us to evaluate the improvements achieved with the treatments.
The meibomian glands located in the edges of the eyelids form the so important fat part of the tear film. If these glands are blocked, only insufficient amounts of fat are released: the tear film evaporates too quickly, causing the surface of the eye to dry out. Two things happen as a result:. A vicious circle develops. As a result, the brain produces more water and the eyes overflow. Paradoxically, if the eye is too dry, it will continue to water over and over again. The inflammation of the eyelid margin is improved by regular cleaning of the eyelid margin.
