Punctal Occlusion is a frontline Dry Eye management strategy
Punctal Plugs
Punctal occlusion is a procedure proven to retain tears on the ocular surface. It is a simple and reversible way of reducing tear drainage that has a good safety profile1.
Who could benefit from plugging?
Dry Eye Disease is now understood to be a continuum with many patients having an aqueous (ADDE) and evaporative (EDE) component that are non-mutually exclusive in contributing their Dry Eye symptoms.
By maintaining a greater volume of natural tears on the ocular surface, punctal occlusion can help reduce patient symptoms regardless of whether ADDE or EDE is the predominant influencing factor.
Advantages of punctal occlusion
A convenient way for patients to improve their dry eye symptoms
Clinically proven to reduce CL Induced Dry Eye
Reduces dependence on artificial tears
Builds loyalty through giving extra care
Parasol®
Parasol is a clever non-dilating punctum plug design. Its novel hollow nose ensures ease of fitting and high retention rates. Parasol is equally simple to remove making occlusion reversible.
Simple sizing
Parasol comes in just four sizes making selection of the correct fitting plug easier than traditional plug designs.
Two sizes fit virtually all patients: Small (72%) and Medium (23%). X-small and large are available for unusually sized puncta.
Microflow™
Designed to provide a simple, reversible means of partial occlusion, Microflow™ Punctal Occluders limit the drainage of tears into the lacrimal duct. Ideal when total occlusion is too much.
Proven to reduce Contact Lens Induced Dry Eye (CLIDE)
Inserting a contact lens uniquely challenges the tear film and ocular surface. Discomfort and specifically dryness sensations is still the leading cause of contact lens drop-out with:
- Over 75% of patients discontinuing contact lens wear at one time or another due to discomfort2
- Up to 50% of soft CL wearers complaining of dryness3
Punctal occlusion as an effective management strategy for CLIDE.4-5
Punctal occlusion reduces all CLIDE symptoms by around 50%6
A recent UK study showed that, following punctal plug fitting, there was a statistically significant reduction in the frequency, severity and overall sum of subjective symptoms associated with dryness among soft contact lens wearers.
Lenses removed less often following plugging
The contact lens wearers removed their lenses on average less than once a week due to dryness compared with several times a week prior to punctal occlusion.
Reduction in dry eye drop usage
Patients in the study used drops up to 5 times (average 2.1) a day in an attempt to relieve symptoms. After punctal occlusion, no patient needed drops more than twice (average 0.6) a day.
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Positive Impact
Described as a “game-changer” and “like a hot stone massage for your eyes” by beauty editors, the multi-award winning Heated Eye Wand has three settings that work together to soothe, hydrate and revive dry, tired eyes.
For this episode of Glasklar Hub our host Nick Atkins will be taking a peek (or should that be peep?!) into a rapidly growing business in the dry eye space – Peep Club.
This month we’ll look at a regular astigmatic patient. Fitting them empirically with a hybrid could mean they are out of your door, delighted, within one to two appointments…
Interested in using Punctal Plugs in your practice?
Contact us to find out more about Punctal Plugs and to order.
References