Overview of Dry Eye Disease for Primary Care Physicians
Dry eye disease (DED), also known as keratoconjunctivitis sicca, is a multifactorial ocular disease characterized by tear film insufficiency due to diverse etiologies including aging, incomplete and infrequent blinking, hormonal changes, medications, and systemic diseases. Classified into aqueous-de...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-03-01
|
| Series: | Medicina |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1648-9144/61/3/460 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1850205254590660608 |
|---|---|
| author | Jeonghyun Kwon Amirhossein Moghtader Christie Kang Zahra Bibak Bejandi Sumaiya Shahjahan Ahmad Alzein Ali R. Djalilian |
| author_facet | Jeonghyun Kwon Amirhossein Moghtader Christie Kang Zahra Bibak Bejandi Sumaiya Shahjahan Ahmad Alzein Ali R. Djalilian |
| author_sort | Jeonghyun Kwon |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Dry eye disease (DED), also known as keratoconjunctivitis sicca, is a multifactorial ocular disease characterized by tear film insufficiency due to diverse etiologies including aging, incomplete and infrequent blinking, hormonal changes, medications, and systemic diseases. Classified into aqueous-deficient dry eye (ADDE), evaporative dry eye (EDE), and mixed subtypes, DED presents with symptoms such as irritation, stinging, redness, foreign body sensation, sensitivity to light, and blurred or fluctuating vision. While rare, severe cases may lead to vision loss. With its rising global prevalence across age groups, DED poses a significant public health challenge. Primary care physicians (PCPs), often the first point of contact for DED patients, require timely screening and management strategies. This review explores the epidemiology, pathophysiology, clinical manifestations, diagnosis, and management of DED, emphasizing practical approaches for PCPs. This narrative review was conducted by searching MEDLINE, PubMed, and Google Scholar databases for relevant articles. Diagnostic approaches, including detailed history taking, patient-reported questionnaires, differential diagnosis, and assessments are discussed alongside management strategies, including symptomatic ophthalmic treatment, risk factor mitigation (e.g., reduced digital device screen time), prevention, and nutrition. By providing a synopsis of early symptoms that PCPs are often the first to encounter, practical approaches to screening and managing DED in the primary care setting, and guidelines on when to refer to specialty care, this comprehensive review aims to equip PCPs with the knowledge to improve DED screening and optimize patient outcomes. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-eab2c0adb5df468c9268b064f73a6976 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1010-660X 1648-9144 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Medicina |
| spelling | doaj-art-eab2c0adb5df468c9268b064f73a69762025-08-20T02:11:08ZengMDPI AGMedicina1010-660X1648-91442025-03-0161346010.3390/medicina61030460Overview of Dry Eye Disease for Primary Care PhysiciansJeonghyun Kwon0Amirhossein Moghtader1Christie Kang2Zahra Bibak Bejandi3Sumaiya Shahjahan4Ahmad Alzein5Ali R. Djalilian6Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USADepartment of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USADepartment of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USADepartment of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USADepartment of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USADepartment of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USADepartment of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USADry eye disease (DED), also known as keratoconjunctivitis sicca, is a multifactorial ocular disease characterized by tear film insufficiency due to diverse etiologies including aging, incomplete and infrequent blinking, hormonal changes, medications, and systemic diseases. Classified into aqueous-deficient dry eye (ADDE), evaporative dry eye (EDE), and mixed subtypes, DED presents with symptoms such as irritation, stinging, redness, foreign body sensation, sensitivity to light, and blurred or fluctuating vision. While rare, severe cases may lead to vision loss. With its rising global prevalence across age groups, DED poses a significant public health challenge. Primary care physicians (PCPs), often the first point of contact for DED patients, require timely screening and management strategies. This review explores the epidemiology, pathophysiology, clinical manifestations, diagnosis, and management of DED, emphasizing practical approaches for PCPs. This narrative review was conducted by searching MEDLINE, PubMed, and Google Scholar databases for relevant articles. Diagnostic approaches, including detailed history taking, patient-reported questionnaires, differential diagnosis, and assessments are discussed alongside management strategies, including symptomatic ophthalmic treatment, risk factor mitigation (e.g., reduced digital device screen time), prevention, and nutrition. By providing a synopsis of early symptoms that PCPs are often the first to encounter, practical approaches to screening and managing DED in the primary care setting, and guidelines on when to refer to specialty care, this comprehensive review aims to equip PCPs with the knowledge to improve DED screening and optimize patient outcomes.https://www.mdpi.com/1648-9144/61/3/460dry eye diseasekeratoconjunctivitis siccaaqueous-deficient dry eyeevaporative dry eyeocular surfacecornea |
| spellingShingle | Jeonghyun Kwon Amirhossein Moghtader Christie Kang Zahra Bibak Bejandi Sumaiya Shahjahan Ahmad Alzein Ali R. Djalilian Overview of Dry Eye Disease for Primary Care Physicians Medicina dry eye disease keratoconjunctivitis sicca aqueous-deficient dry eye evaporative dry eye ocular surface cornea |
| title | Overview of Dry Eye Disease for Primary Care Physicians |
| title_full | Overview of Dry Eye Disease for Primary Care Physicians |
| title_fullStr | Overview of Dry Eye Disease for Primary Care Physicians |
| title_full_unstemmed | Overview of Dry Eye Disease for Primary Care Physicians |
| title_short | Overview of Dry Eye Disease for Primary Care Physicians |
| title_sort | overview of dry eye disease for primary care physicians |
| topic | dry eye disease keratoconjunctivitis sicca aqueous-deficient dry eye evaporative dry eye ocular surface cornea |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1648-9144/61/3/460 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT jeonghyunkwon overviewofdryeyediseaseforprimarycarephysicians AT amirhosseinmoghtader overviewofdryeyediseaseforprimarycarephysicians AT christiekang overviewofdryeyediseaseforprimarycarephysicians AT zahrabibakbejandi overviewofdryeyediseaseforprimarycarephysicians AT sumaiyashahjahan overviewofdryeyediseaseforprimarycarephysicians AT ahmadalzein overviewofdryeyediseaseforprimarycarephysicians AT alirdjalilian overviewofdryeyediseaseforprimarycarephysicians |