The most often question I get is how often should I do the warm compresses and for how long. The short answer is 15min 2x per day as hot as you can stand it without burning the skin. There are no randomized controlled studies yet to standardize the best way to apply warm compresses. We […]
Warm Compresses: How Often? How Long? Read More »
Exosomes have become a better-understood cellular vehicle or vesicle to help stimulate the body’s regenerative properties. These little vesicles are extracellular vesicles (EVs) with a diameter of about 40-100nm which are produced in the endosomal compartment of most eukaryotic cells. They are composed of lipids, proteins, mRNA, and miRNAs which appear to work to stimulate the body’s own progenitor cells.
Exosomes and Dry Eye Disease: its Role in Regenerative Medicine Read More »
Many of my patients have tried hundreds of different artificial tears. The only drop that was shown to be superior in a study, not sponsored by the company, was RETAINE. But I have many patients who really get more eye irritation with Retaine. The key issue is to avoid Preservatives as these are a concern
Artificial Tear Recommendation Read More »
A patient told me today that her mother noted her eyelashes grew when she used Restasis. I had not heard this complaint so had to look it up. It turns out there is 1 case report published on this phenomenon and a couple of online blog posts noting Restasis may be associated with longer eyelashes.
Does Restasis or Cyclosporin Grow Eyelashes? Read More »
New Dry Eye Products are coming to market faster than ever. Cequa (Cyclosporin 0.09%) was just FDA approved and released on the market 2 weeks ago. Cequa hopes to take down Restasis (Cyclosporin 0.09%) as a more comfortable Cyclosporin drop without the side effects with Cequa’s nanomicelles technology which encapsulates the cyclosporin molecule. Still about
New Additions to Dry Eye Regimen: Will be adding them to my Step Ladder. Read More »
The Best Chronic Pain Specialist in the World Many patients are living with chronic pain. It can be very hard to find an MD or surgeon who will take one seriously and help end the pain. Often chronic pain conditions are due to multiple causes and a team is needed to help stop the cascading
The Best Chronic Pain Specialist in the World Read More »
These types of studies are frustrating as they are sponsored by the drug company that makes Retina A cream. Still looking for unbiased studies. SLC J Clin Pharmacol. 1997 Apr;37(4):279-84. Negligible systemic absorption of topical isotretinoin cream: implications for teratogenicity. Chen C1, Jensen BK, Mistry G, Wyss R, Zultak M, Patel IH, Rakhit AK. Author information 1 Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Hoffmann-La
Systemic Absorption of Retina A Cream into Body Read More »
Tacrolimus is often prescribed for T cell-mediated diseases such as: 1. eczema or atopic dermatitis 2. psoriasis 3. Vitiligo Orally Tacrolimus is used to: 1. prevent organ rejection 2. Uveitis after Bone Marrow transplantation 3. Minimal change disease of the kidney 4. Kimura’s disease Tacrolimus inhibits the production of interleukin-2, a molecule that promotes the development and proliferation of T cells,
This is a question one of our staff asked me for a friend. Accutane is a very concerning drug. I have now seen over 200 patients who have had serious dry eye issues who used Accutane in the past. This is still, though, a small sample size. My best friend used Accutane for years and
Should Everyone Get a Lipiflow before Starting Accutane? Read More »
Acitretin is a retinoid, which structurally similar to Accutane– which is known to cause severe meibomian gland dysfunction. I could not find a paper stating Acitretin causes meibomian gland issues but there has been no study to evaluate “acitretin’s long term effect on meibomian and lacrimal glands. Acitretin can cause dry eyes and dryness of the mouth, nose, and throat according
Acitretin (Soriatane) is a retinoid, which is a form of vitamin A. Read More »