Dry Eye Clinic in Danville

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Dry Eye Diagnosis, Analysis, & Treatment

More than 16 million Americans suffer from the irritating symptoms of dry eye disease. Even though the condition is common, you shouldn’t suffer in silence — relief is available.

While dry eye disease is rarely serious on it’s own, if left untreated it can lead to long-term complications like infections and corneal damage.

A special dry eye exam determines your unique case and we custom tailor a medical treatment plan specifically for you.

Schedule an appointment today.

Dry Eye: What Is It?

Dry eye is one of the most common and chronic problems encountered in normal daily life. Dry eye symptoms include red, irritated, and even watery eyes, which can be exacerbated from computer usage, reading, medications, ultraviolet exposure, and allergies (to name a few).

Dry eye occurs when your tears cannot provide proper lubrication for your eyes. Either you aren’t producing enough tears, or your tears dry up too quickly.

Your tear film plays an essential role in keeping your eyes healthy. The tear film is made up of 3 important layers:

  • Mucus layer—responsible for keeping your tears fastened to your eye
  • Watery layer—keeps your eye hydrated and washes away bacteria
  • Oily layer—prevents your tears from evaporating too quickly

When there is a problem with any of these 3 layers, you can experience the symptoms of dry eye disease. If left untreated, dry eye can lead to vision problems, including eye infections or damage to the surface of your eye.

Risk Factors and Symptoms of Dry Eye

The cause and symptoms of dry eye vary from patient to patient. We’ll perform an in-depth evaluation of your eyes and discuss the symptoms you’re experiencing to determine what’s causing your dry eyes. Once we’ve detected the cause, we can create a customized treatment plan to bring you relief.

  • Age—our eyes produce less tears as get older
  • Environment—dry air, wind, AC, screen usage, etc. can contribute to dry eye
  • Ultraviolet light—exposure to UV rays can affect tear quality
  • Gender—women are more likely to experience dry eye symptoms
  • Medications—certain medications can contribute to dry eye
  • Medical conditions—conditions can lead to dry eye (i.e. diabetes or arthritis)
  • Contact lenses—wearing contacts regularly can put you at risk for dry eye
  • LASIK—certain eye surgeries may lead to dry eye symptoms

Many patients with dry eye disease experience some or all of the following symptoms, typically in both eyes:

  • Stinging, burning, or scratchy feeling
  • Gritty feeling
  • Foreign body sensation
  • Red eyes
  • Watery eyes
  • Blurred vision
  • Eye fatigue or tired eyes
  • Light sensitivity
  • Difficulty driving at night
  • Difficulty wearing contact lenses
  • Stringy mucus in or around your eyes

If you experience any of these symptoms, please get in touch with us for a dry eye diagnosis.

Treatment Methods

Your treatment plan can vary depending on what’s causing your dry eyes. We offer a number of techniques to help ensure your tear film is stable and keep your eyes adequately moisturized. We’ll be sure to go over our recommended treatments in detail and answer any questions you have. Together, we can achieve your best eye health yet.

BlephEx is a quick and painless in-office treatment used to help promote good eyelid hygiene.

Using the handheld device with a spinning micro-sponge tip, your optometrist will gently exfoliate along your eyelids and eyelashes. This process removes bacteria and debris to help keep your eyelids healthy, which is critical for normal tear production.

Lascrisert is a preservative-free way to help eliminate your dry eye symptoms all day long.

The prescription lubricant is inserted into the eye by gently taking hold of the corner of your lower eyelid and pulling it out to create a pocket. Next, place Lascrisert into the pocket and pull the lid up and over it. Release and allow the insert to settle into the pocket.

Lascrisert softens within one hour and completely dissolves within 14–18 hours.

Lid debridement is the method of scaling the margin at the base of the lashes and the thin line of the eyelid that contacts the eye. The scaling is meant to remove debris and bacteria that are affecting the meibomian glands.

The meibomian glands produce the oil in your tear film that helps ensure your tears aren’t evaporating too quickly. When the meibomian glands are healthy, so are your tears.

Meibomian gland expression is a technique used to gently squeeze out the oil from the meibomian glands, which are located along the edge of your eyelids, to remove any oil clogging the glands.

Thick oil can block the glands, stopping oil from reaching the tear film. Once unclogged, healthy oil can continue to flow back into your tears.

We offer prescription eye drop developed to treat chronic dry eye disease caused by decreased tear production. When used twice a day, every day, 12 hours apart, they can help increase your eye’s natural tear production.

Specialized artificial tears, or medicated eye drops, may be a useful option for managing dry eye symptoms.

Recently, new tear formulas with higher concentrations of hyaluronic acid and phosphate-free are available to patients with tear deficiencies. We can help you find the right formula for your eyes.

Heat therapy can be extremely effective if delivered and applied correctly to the eyelid margins.

We use a specific type of heating pad that reaches over 109 degrees and has been clinically proven to help melt the meibum (oil) back to its liquid state, helping to keep the eyes hydrated. The extent and time of the treatment is customized in your dry eye evaluation.

Punctal plugs are tiny medical devices inserted into the tear ducts to keep fluid from draining from the eyes. These plugs help to keep the eyes moist and relieve discomfort while being very low maintenance.

IPL (intense pulsed light) therapy is an in-office treatment designed to reduce inflammation linked to dry eye disease. This noninvasive procedure uses light energy to eliminate some of the factors contributing to inflammation, like irregular blood vessels.

By treating the inflammation at the source, IPL allows the eye to produce a healthier tear film, which can alleviate dry eye symptoms.

Certain nutrients and vitamins can help manage dry eye.

Omega-3s are especially beneficial for those with dry eyes. Fish, like salmon, sardines, and mackerel are good sources of omega-3s, as are walnuts and flaxseed. Omega-3 supplements are another way to get more of the nutrients you need to enhance the overall health of your eye tissue.

The TearCare® System is intended for the application of localized heat therapy in adult patients with evaporative dry eye disease due to meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD), when used in conjunction with manual expression of the meibomian glands.

TearCare is a revolutionary solution for dry eye sufferers. Using innovative technology, it delivers targeted, regulated warmth to the eyelids, promoting the efficient release of oils from the Meibomian glands, crucial for stable tear film. This process optimizes tear production and reduces evaporation, alleviating dry eye symptoms. TearCare’s precise and non-invasive approach offers a quick, comfortable, in-office procedure. By enhancing the quality and quantity of tears, TearCare significantly improves ocular comfort, vision clarity, and overall eye health for those struggling with dry eye, making daily discomfort a thing of the past.

Relief is Within Reach

We know just how irritating dry eyes can be, and we’re committed to helping diminish your discomfort. If you’re suffering from dry eye symptoms, visit us for a comprehensive eye exam.

Say goodbye to dry eyes and discover a life of long-lasting relief.

Contact Us

Comprehensive Eye Care & Trendy Eyewear

Receive the detailed eye care you deserve and find your next favorite pair of frames by visiting us today! Call us to book an appointment.

Where to Park?

We’re located in Tassajara Crossing, with plenty of parking available. You can access us from Camino Tassajara or Center Way.

Our Address

  • 3464 Camino Tassajara
  • Danville, CA 94506

Contact Information

Hours Of Operation

  • Monday: Closed
  • Tuesday: 9:00 AM 5:00 PM
  • Wednesday: 9:00 AM 5:00 PM
  • Thursday: 9:00 AM 5:00 PM
  • Friday: 9:00 AM 5:00 PM
  • Saturday: 8:30 AM 2:00 PM
  • Sunday: Closed

*Closed weekdays for lunch 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM.

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