Dry Eye Assessment

You may have dry eyes if your eyes are:

• Watery – tearing a lot
• Red
• Gritty and sore – burning sensation
• Sensitive to light
• Blurry – clears on blinking
• Sticky – mucus and stuck eyelids in the morning
• Itchy

You may be more likely to get dry eyes if:

• You wear contact lenses
• You are going through hormonal changes
• You are over 50
• You look at computer screens for long periods of time
• You are in an air-conditioned environment
• You smoke or drink alcohol
• You have had laser refractive surgery
• You are on certain medications
• You have a condition such as blepharitis, Sjögren's syndrome or lupus

At Eye Opticians our dry eye consultation will include:

• History and symptoms
• Investigation of eye structures
• Lid and gland evaluation
• Blink rate assessment
• Tear film and fluorescein assessment
• Advice and treatment plan
• BlephEx recommendation

Blephasol Duo is a pack made up of Blephasol (a bottle of eyelid cleaning solution) and 100 lint-free wipes. The wipes are moistened with this solution and then used to clean the eye. Blephasol is usually used for daily maintenance of a clean eyelid after the initial intensive clean with Blephaclean has been done. If one wipe is used per eye every day, a pack should last for 50 days.

Blephaclean wipes are usually used for an initial intensive clean of debris from the eyelids. These are rectangular wet wipes, individually packed in foil, which are pre-soaked in a more concentrated solution than Blephasol. Each wipe can be cut into two pieces and one piece used for each eye. It is recommended to wipe the eyes once per day, and there are 20 individually foil-wrapped wipes in each pack, so each pack can last for 20 days.

Thealoz Duo is an eye drop product used to moisten dry eyes with lubricating and anti-inflammatory ingredients. It is suitable for the dry eyes of contact lens and non-contact lens wearers alike. It can be used as often as needed, and once opened will not expire for 3 months. The bottle does not need to be refrigerated to be kept fresh, because it has a special filter preventing bacteria from entering the bottle. It does not contain preservatives, as preservatives have been found to cause harm to the eye if used long term. The bottle has also been specially designed to be easy to squeeze and grip, and can be rested on the nose to ensure accuracy when putting drops into the eye.

Thealoz Duo Gel is a pack of 30 small individual vials of a concentrated gel with lubricant and anti-inflammatory ingredients. This is more concentrated than the Thealoz Duo drops and comes as a gel. It can blur vision (usually for 5 minutes) due to its consistency, but it has a longer-lasting moisturising effect than the eye drops, so it is recommended for use at night or for severe dry eyes. If used by a contact lens wearer, it is recommended that contact lenses are not put on until at least 30 minutes after use. It does not contain preservatives, which does mean that the vials cannot be stored and can only be used once a day. Each vial contains 6 drops; one drop is needed per eye, although you can use more if you wish. One vial can be used for both eyes, as the liquid has a very thick consistency so the output from a vial can be easily controlled. Each pack will last for 30 days if used daily.

The THERA°PEARL eye mask can be used hot or cold depending on its use. It can be washed with soap and water and reused again and again. For dry eye, the mask is heated in a microwave for 10 to 20 seconds and then applied for 20 minutes. This heats any blocked meibomian glands to help unblock them. These glands will then help to lubricate the eye.