Ophthalmic Consultants of Long Island Introduces New, Breakthrough Treatment for Dry Eye Disease

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Dry eye disease is an epidemic in the United States and the most common concern patients discuss when visiting eye care professionals.

Westbury, NY (PRWEB) June 27, 2012

Ophthalmic Consultants of Long Island (OCLI), a full service eye care center, announced that it is the first in Nassau and Suffolk County to introduce a new treatment for patients who suffer from evaporative dry eye disease. Dry eye disease is the most common reason why patients visit their eye doctor. This disease often stems from a deficiency or degeneration in the oil layer of the eye’s natural tear film. The oily lipids serve as a protective layer so that the aqueous (water) layer of the eye’s tear film does not evaporate. OCLI has introduced a new, advanced in-office treatment, called LipiFlow®, which treats patients with blocked oil glands in their eyelids, called meibomian gland dysfunction. Unblocking the oil glands helps restore a healthy tear film.

Dry eye disease affects more than 100 million people worldwide. Of those, 65 percent suffer from Evaporative Dry Eye. Common symptoms of dry eye include dryness, grittiness, soreness, irritation, burning, visual fluctuation and eye fatigue. These symptoms can hinder people’s daily activities such as reading, driving, using the computer, wearing contact lenses and being outdoors on windy days. Many dry eye patients complain their symptoms worsen throughout the day. “Dry eye disease is an epidemic in the United States and the most common concern patients discuss when visiting eye care professionals,” said Dr. Eric Donnenfeld a founding partner of OCLI. “We are very pleased to introduce the new LipiFlow treatment to help those patients who are very frustrated with this chronic disease and all of the ways it negatively impacts their lives. In effect, LipiFlow helps the meibomian glands resume their natural function and many patients who have tried everything else have received symptom relief.”

Historically, common therapies aimed at dry eye symptom relief included using warm compresses, over- the-counter wetting drops and ointments, and prescription drugs. Alternatively, the new LipiFlow treatment addresses the root cause of evaporative dry eye by unblocking the meibomian glands that secrete oily lipids. In controlled clinical studies of patients who received a single LipiFlow treatment, the average meibomian gland score at 4 weeks increased by two to three times over the baseline condition, which reflects improvement in the number of glands secreting and secretion quality. Additionally, at four weeks after the LipiFlow treatment, 79% of patients reported improvement in dry eye symptoms.

About Ophthalmic Consultants of Long Island
OCLI, one of the largest and most prestigious ophthalmology practices in the nation, consists of 25 eye doctors and specialists representing most subspecialties of ophthalmology and optometry in 9 locations throughout Long Island; in Rockville Centre, Lynbrook, Valley Stream, East Setauket, Manhasset, East Meadow, Port Jefferson, Mineola and Inwood. OCLI also has a research department that is involved in FDA studies to improve the treatment and diagnosing of ophthalmic diseases. For more information, please call 1-866-SEE-OCLI (1-866-733-6254) or visit http://www.ocli.net.

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