In Pursuit of Ocular Health
Our deep focus on eye disease stems from the unmet and growing need to counter prevalent, difficult-to-treat ophthalmic conditions.
Dry Eye Disease (DED)
One of the most common eye conditions worldwide, clinically significant dry eye disease (DED) affects an estimated 5 million Americans over the age of 50, and the results of a recent Gallup poll showed that more than 26 million Americans suffer from dry eyes, with that number expected to increase to more than 29 million in the next ten years. DED symptoms include scratchy, itchy, burning, or stinging sensations, and pain or redness in the eye.1
DED is caused when tears aren’t able to adequately lubricate the eyes because of insufficient tear volume,2 increased tear evaporation,2 or by a deficiency in the quality of the tears themselves.1
The consequences of DED include subtle but constant eye irritation and infection, significant inflammation of the eye, and decreased quality of life.1,2
Although treatments exist on the market today, dry eye is a multifactorial disease and there remain unmet needs for a very large patient population.
Resources:
- All about vision: https://www.allaboutvision.com/conditions/dryeye-syndrome.htm
- American Optometric Association: https://www.aoa.org/patients-and-public/eye-and-vision-problems/glossary-of-eye-and-vision-conditions/dry-eye
- Mayo Clinic: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dry-eyes/symptoms-causes/syc-20371863
1. R Adler, MD. Dry eye syndrome: Symptoms and causes. https://www.allaboutvision.com/conditions/dryeye-syndrome.htm. Accessed April 23, 2019. Published April, 2019.
2. Mayo Clinic. Dry eyes. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dry-eyes/symptoms-causes/syc-20371863. Accessed April 23, 2019. Published March 14, 2019.
