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. 2014 Jun;157(6):1122-9.
doi: 10.1016/j.ajo.2014.03.002. Epub 2014 Mar 12.

New testing options for diagnosing and grading dry eye disease

Gary N Foulks  1 , Stephen C Pflugfelder  2
Affiliations

New testing options for diagnosing and grading dry eye disease

Gary N Foulks et al. Am J Ophthalmol. 2014 Jun.

Abstract

Purpose: To describe new options for diagnosis and severity grading of dry eye disease.

Design: Perspective on technological advancements to identify tear dysfunction and their value in diagnosing and grading dry eye disease.

Methods: Evidence is presented on new and evolving technologies to measure tear stability, composition, and meniscus height and their role in dry eye diagnosis and therapeutic efficacy grading is assessed.

Results: Evolving concepts regarding pathogenesis and new technologies to evaluate the tears and ocular surface have improved the ability to diagnose, classify, and grade the severity of dry eye disease. New technologies include noninvasive imaging of tear stability and tear meniscus height as a measure of tear volume and tear composition (osmolarity, lacrimal factors, inflammatory mediators, growth and differentiation factors). Approved tests, such as tear osmolarity and tear imaging, are being integrated into clinical practice and may eventually supplant certain traditional tests that have greater variability and less sensitivity. Other tests, such as molecular assays of tears and conjunctival cells, are currently being used in studies investigating pathogenesis and therapeutic mechanism of action. They may eventually translate to routine clinical practice.

Conclusions: New technologies have emerged that can noninvasively evaluate the tears and measure disease-associated compositional changes. These tests are being integrated into clinical practice and therapeutic trials for diagnosis, classification, and severity grading of dry eye disease.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
International Workshop on Dry Eye: Classification of Dry Eye Disease (Adapted from: The definition and classification of dry eye disease: Report of the Definition and Classification Subcommittee of the International Dry Eye WorkShop (2007). Ocul Surf. 2007;5(2):75–92)
Figure 2
Figure 2
TearLab Osmometer Instrument in clinical use (Courtesy of TearLab, Inc, San Diego, CA)
Figure 3
Figure 3
Inter-eye variability of tear osmolarity in dry eye disease. There is increasing variability of tear osmolarity with increasing severity of dry eye disease. Absolute inter-eye difference is in mOsm/L (Lemp MA, Bron AJ, Baudouin C, et al. Tear osmolarity in the diagnosis and management of dry eye disease. Am J Ophthalmol. 2011;151(5):792–798.)
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