SOVS Paper of the Week: Dry eye is a common condition causing symptoms of discomfort that can limit daily activities and work productivity. Evaporative dry eye occurs when the outermost lipid layer of the tear film is disrupted leading to increased tear film evaporation from the surface of the eye. Tear supplementation using artificial tears or rewetting eye drops provide symptomatic relief for dry eye, but lipid-containing lubricant eye drops may be more suitable in evaporative dry eye to stabilize the tear film lipid layer and minimise tear film evaporation. As part of a large multicentre study, researchers from the Eye Research Group evaluated the effect of two lipid-based lubricant eye drops on comfort and tear film characteristics in patients with lipid-deficient dry eye.
Eligible participants were randomized to receive one of the two study eye drops and were instructed to use the eye drops four times daily. Follow-up assessments were conducted at Day 15 and Day 35 of treatment.
Both study eye drops were equally effective for improving ocular comfort and tear film stability in patients with lipid-deficient dry eye, and both treatments were well tolerated. These study findings support the use of targeted lipid-containing lubricant eye drops for the management of evaporative dry eye.