Ocular surface disease (OSD) is common among glaucoma patients. Clinical assessment of OSD can be challenging. This review focuses on some of the limitations relating to both subjective and objective measures of OSD, including dry eye. A survey of the literature was conducted to identify the caveats associated with different methods of assessing OSD. The effect of preservatives on the ocular su...

The lacrimal functional unit (LFU) is defined as an integrated system comprising the lacrimal glands, ocular surface (cornea, conjunctiva and meibomian glands) and lids, and the sensory and motor nerves that connect them. The majority of dry eye symptoms are due to a chronic inflammation of the lacrimal functional unit resulting in a loss of tear film integrity and normal function. This leads t...

Purpose To investigate the role of mitogen-activated protein kinase-activated protein kinase-2 (MK2) in ocular surface damage of dry eye. Methods MK2 inhibition was performed in mice subjected to desiccating stress (DS) by topical application of MK2 inhibitor (MK2i) or vehicle eye drops. The total and phosphorylated MK2 in conjunctiva were detected by Western blot. The phenol red cotton test ...

PURPOSE. The ocular surface epithelium is part of the mucosal defense system. Because transcription factor NFB in mucosal epithelial cells plays a central role in regulating the genes that govern the onset of mucosal inflammatory responses, we examined the role of a regulator of NFB, I B , in murine ocular surface inflammation. METHODS. The eyes of I B / mice were analyzed biomicroscopically an...

The role of nitric oxide (NO) in the ocular surface remains unknown. We investigated the conditions leading to an increase of NO generation in tear and the main sources of NO in ocular surface tissue. We evaluated the dual action (cell survival or cell death) of NO depending on its amount. We measured the concentration of nitrite plus nitrate in the tears of ocular surface diseases and examined...

Patients with Graves' ophthalmopathy can be very challenging to manage secondary to the complex nature of their disease presentation. Patients may present with a variety of ocular findings including: lid retraction, periorbital and lid swelling, chemosis, conjunctival hyperemia, proptosis, optic neuropathy, restrictive myopathy, exposure keratopathy and/or keratoconjunctivitis sicca. Mini-scler...

PURPOSE Because dry eye greatly reduces quality of life, this study aimed to examine rebamipide instillation in patients with dry eye and assess the improvement of signs and symptoms as evaluated with the Ocular Surface Disease Index, which is the most popular index and is highly reliable. METHODS From June 2013 through January 2014, we examined 50 eyes of 25 patients with dry eye (6 men and ...

Dry eye (DE) is a chronic ocular condition with high prevalence and morbidity. It has a complex pathophysiology and is multifactorial in nature. Chronic ocular surface inflammation has emerged as a key component of DE that is capable of perpetuating ocular surface damage and leading to symptoms of ocular pain, discomfort, and visual phenomena. It begins with stress to the ocular surface leading...

Conjunctival goblet cell (GC) loss in dry eye is associated with ocular surface inflammation. This study investigated if conjunctival GCs contribute to ocular surface immune tolerance. Antigens applied to the ocular surface, imaged by confocal microscopy, passed into the conjunctival stroma through goblet cell associated passages (GAPs) in wild type C57BL/6 (WT), while ovalbumin (OVA) was retai...

PURPOSE To study the in vitro and in vivo interaction of chitosan nanoparticles (CSNPs), a new particulate drug carrier, with epithelial cells on the ocular surface. METHODS CSNPs labeled with fluorescein isothiocyanate-bovine serum albumin were produced by ionotropic gelation. Human conjunctival epithelial cells (IOBA-NHC) were exposed for 15, 30, 60, and 120 minutes to three different CSNP ...