Restoration of meibomian gland functionality with novel thermodynamic treatment device-a case report

Abstract

A new and previously unpublished thermodynamic treatment device, which for the first time applies heat directly to both inner eyelid surfaces with a precision-controlled resistive heater while pulsating pressure is simultaneously applied to the outer eyelids using an inflatable air bladder, was used to restore meibomian gland functionality for a subject with severe evaporative dry eye. The subject, a 39-year-old white woman of light complexion with severe symptoms and corroborating objective signs of dry eye, had been unsuccessfully treated for 3 years by 7 practitioners. Using a new standardized meibomian gland expression device, a diagnosis of nonobvious meibomian gland dysfunction, where none of the approximately 24 meibomian glands of the right lower eyelid and 1 meibomian gland of the left lower eyelid were functional, was made. The patient underwent a single 12-minute treatment per eye with the treatment device. The treatment restored the functionality of 8 glands in each eye, doubled the fluorescein break-up time (FBUT) from 5 to 10 seconds, and decreased the symptom scores by approximately 80% for the entire follow-up period of 3 months.