Research Article: Association of Treatment Duration and Clinical Outcomes in Dry Eye Treatment with Sutureless Cryopreserved Amniotic Membrane
Abstract:
Dry eye disease (DED) is a multifactorial disease affecting an estimated million people in the United States. First-line therapies include artificial tears and topical anti-inflammatories, including corticosteroids, cyclosporine, and lifitegrast. Other common therapies include punctal occlusion for individuals with aqueous tear deficiency and warm compresses and lid hygiene for those with meibomian gland dysfunction. However, these treatments may fail to alleviate signs and symptoms in those with more severe forms of dry eye, necessitating the use of alternative therapies. One such treatment includes sutureless, self-retained cryopreserved amniotic membrane (cAM), which has been regarded as a standard of care for the treatment of many ocular surface diseases in the United States. Sutureless cAM covers and protects the corneal surface while promoting corneal healing through its anti-inflammatory and anti-scarring properties that support epithelial adhesion and differentiation., When used in patients with severe DED, cAM has been shown to significantly improve the ocular surface health and symptoms for up to months.– In one prospective, randomized study, treatment with cAM for – days resulted in a significant improvement in dry eye severity score, corneal staining, tear break-up time, and corneal nerve density in DED patients at and months, whereas control subjects receiving conventional maximum treatment showed no significant change. Aside from the anti-inflammatory benefits, the lasting effect of a single placement of cAM was also attributed to the regeneration of the corneal nerves, which play a vital role in epithelial regeneration and tear film stability through reflex tearing and blinking.
Introduction:
Dry eye disease (DED) is a multifactorial disease affecting an estimated million people in the United States. First-line therapies include artificial tears and topical anti-inflammatories, including corticosteroids, cyclosporine, and lifitegrast. Other common therapies include punctal occlusion for individuals with aqueous tear deficiency and warm compresses and lid hygiene for those with meibomian gland dysfunction. However, these treatments may fail to alleviate signs and symptoms in those with more severe forms…
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