Blacksburg Eye | Advanced Dry Eye Diagnostics and Treatment
Our experienced team is committed to providing comprehensive, long-term solutions that address your specific dry eye condition, helping you achieve lasting comfort and optimal eye health.
Blacksburg Eye offers state-of-the-art diagnostic technology to better evaluate and treat your dry eye disease, offering an improvement in quality of life. We strive to identify the underlying causes of your symptoms to develop personalized treatment strategies.
Dry Eye Disease Diagnostic Services Available at Blacksburg Eye:
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Diagnostic Meibography: Advanced imaging to assess meibomian gland structure and function. (photo)
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Slit-Lamp Imaging: Detailed examination of ocular surface health and tear film quality. (photo of tear film or staining)
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Corneal Topography: Precise mapping of corneal surface irregularities (photo of k-topo normal vs dry eye)
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Tear Film Analysis: Measure stability of the tear film and dynamically measure tear break-up-time across the cornea. (photo of medmont tear film analysis)
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InflammaDry MMP-9: Tear-film analysis measures the amount of MMP-9, which is a marker for inflammation
Advanced Treatment and Management Options
Our therapeutic approach addresses symptoms but also targets the underlying causes through multiple treatment modalities. Here are some of the services that we use to help people recover
Envision by InMode
RF treatment is used to heat and unclog blocked meibomian glands while stimulating collagen production. IPL reduces inflammation by targeting blood vessels and killing bacteria around the eyelids. This dual approach treats the root cause of dry eye disease.
Prescription Medications
We treat each patient as an individual, and many times that requires medications. We’ll review your goals and provide prescription medications as needed, including common treatments like Restasis, Xiidra, and other targeted dry eye therapies.
Amniotic Membrane Therapy
Amniotic membrane provides anti-inflammatory proteins and growth factors that repair damaged ocular surface tissue, while also acting as a protective barrier. They are similar to a large contact lens and worn for about a week, releasing stem cells and bioactive compounds that break the cycle of chronic inflammation.
Blepharitis Management
Comprehensive lid hygiene protocols and targeted treatments including medications like Xdemvy, and in-office treatments with BlephEx.
Scleral Contact Lenses
Special custom contact lenses used to create a saline reservoir that continuously hydrates the cornea while protecting it from irritants. Unlike regular contacts, they vault over the cornea without touching it, providing superior comfort for dry eye patients.
Lifestyle & Cosmetics Review
We’ll review nutrition essentials and discuss recommendations for cosmetics to optimize ocular surface health.
Punctal Plug Removal
While it can be a useful tool, we have found punctal plugs may exacerbate inflammatory dry eye disease in some patients.
What Causes Dry Eyes?
While over eighty percent (80%) of dry eye cases are due to blocked oil glands in the eyelids — a condition called meibomian gland dysfunction or evaporative dry eye — many other factors can cause this syndrome. These include:
Gender – the majority of dry eye sufferers are women. This tends to be caused by hormonal changes, whether through the use of contraceptives, pregnancy or menopause.
Age – there’s a higher prevalence of DES in those over 50 years of age
Environment – dry wind, dry air and dry climates can evaporate the tears. Home and car heaters, air conditioners, fans and hair dryers also cause tears to evaporate.
Medication – these include antidepressants, decongestants and blood pressure medications.
Auto-immune disorders – Sjogren’s disease and arthritis, among others.
How Do I Know If I Have Dry Eye Syndrome?
Do any of these symptoms seem familiar?
- Gritty, itchy, or stinging eyes
- Excessive tearing and discharge
- Eyes that feel tired or dry
- Increased light sensitivity
- Regularly using eye drops
- Discomfort that worsens as the day progresses
Suffering from dry eye syndrome not only diminishes your quality of life but also makes daily activities such as reading, doing sports, or driving a struggle.
Think you have dry eye syndrome? Get to the root of your eye discomfort by contacting us today.
Lasting & Effective Dry Eye Treatment
Our dry eye program works like therapy, where we aren't simply prescribing a quick medication, but rather we want to create an individualized solution for each patient. Prior to administering any treatment, we need to get to the root cause in order to offer the most adequate treatment possible.
Because of the variety of treatments that can help relieve dry eye symptoms, a dry eye examination is essential to know what treatment to start. For example, prescription drops like Restasis or Xiidra may help relieve inflammatory tear deficiency, while mild cases of dry eye can benefit from non-prescription treatments including heat masks, lid scrubs, gland debridement, artificial tears, or punctal plugs among others.
Learn More about Dry Eye Syndrome | FAQ
While nearly every eye doctor provides dry eye services, making the decision to find a dry eye professional that much more difficult, we encourage you to contact us for a phone consultation.
We’re happy to share with you information about our dry eye program, and the type of results we’ve provided other patients for significant lasting improvements within a relatively short period of time. Contact us to find out how we can help you relieve your dry eye symptoms and start managing your eye health successfully, today.
