Dry Eye Gadgets and Gizmos – Oculus Keratograph
Hello MVC family! In the not too distant past, we shared the exciting news about our recently opened Dry Eye Treatment Clinic, and all the new gadgets and gizmos that help us treat those dry peepers. Let’s take a deeper dive into the cool factor of each dry eye gadget and gizmo. First up, the Oculus Keratograph!
Do you remember grade 6 geography? We do (a little too clearly)! We remember having to make a topographical model of an island for a school project to represent its shape and elevation above sea level. The map showed the island’s surface contours, so if you were to visit there you would know what to expect in terms of its scale and landscape shape.
The Oculus Keratograph helps us measure corneal topography, or the curvature and contours of the front-most part of your eye, in a non-invasive way. Knowing the shape of a patient’s cornea helps us to treat dry eye and fit patients with contact lenses who wouldn’t otherwise be able to wear them. Using Oculus topography, we can create patient-specific fits because we know the specific shape and elevation of each patient’s cornea. So, our patients with corneal conditions such as scarring and those who have high astigmatism finally have the option of wearing contact lenses that preserve and protect their corneas while also yielding their best vision possible.
Oculus also has several other cool features to help us when treating dry eyes. We can use it to measure how high the tear layer measures up the edge of a patient’s eyeball, also called the tear meniscus. The height of the tear meniscus tells us how much tear fluid one actually has, and if it measures under a certain amount it can indicate low tear film quality.
Oculus can also help us measure how quickly a patient’s tear film breaks up and if it breaks up at different rates on different parts of the cornea. Our tears work to reduce friction during blinks and maintain ocular comfort, so we do not want them to break up quickly. If they break up under a certain amount of time, it can create the sensation of dry, gritty, uncomfortable eyes that appear visibly red. Speaking of red eyes, Oculus can help us score the redness level of the eyeball (bulbar redness). When we score and track this redness, we can effectively document any eye abnormalities and create a relevant treatment plan.
We have teeny oil glands that line the edge of our eyelids, called Meibomian glands. Their job is to secrete oil to coat the surface of our eyes in order to prevent the water component of our tears from drying out. Meibomian gland dysfunction is the most frequent cause of dry eye. When these little glands malfunction then tear water will evaporate leading to those tired, dry, uncomfortable eyes. Oculus can help us examine and track any changes in the meibomian glands’ structure so we can tailor dry eye treatments to our patients over time. Stay tuned for a closer look at our next gadget/gizmo that helps in treating Meibomian gland dysfunction, our IRPL device.