DRY EYE CHECKLIST
__Redness
__Burning
__Itching
__Fluctuation in vision
__Feeling of sand or grit in eye
__Contact lens discomfort
__Light sensitivity
__Watery eyes
__Tired eyes
*If you check two or more symptoms you may have dry eye disease and you should discuss your symptoms with your doctor.
Dry eye is a disease that affects the quality and quantity of tears on the ocular surface of the eye. This results in foreign body sensation, discomfort, redness, and visual disturbance. It is estimated that 55 million people in the US have dry eye. The causes of dry eye include: environmental (dry or high altitude), medications (Anti-histamines, anti-depressants, birth control, beta-blockers), contact lens wear, diseases (i.e. Rheumatoid arthritis, Parkinson’s disease, Sjogrens Syndrome, Lupus, Rosacea), refractive eye surgeries, changes in hormones, and blink rate reduction.
That’s why it is essential to get your tears analyzed by your eye doctor. Only an eye doctor can properly diagnose your problem and treat it appropriately. Your eye doctor will take a sample of tears from each eye and use the TearLab to measure osmolarity (the sample taken will be no larger than the period at the end of this sentence.)
Osmolarity is the accepted standard for diagnosing dry eye disease. The TearLab Osmolarity Test will give your doctor a meaningful measurement of the health of stability of your tear film.
Once your doctor has determined your osmolarity number using TearLab, he or she can design a treatment regimen tailored to your specific condition.
Call our office today to inquire about the TearLab Osmolarity Test.
