TFOS DEWS II Report Executive Summary
Summary (3 min read)
1. Introduction
- Dry eye disease (DED) affects hundreds of millions of people throughout the world and is one of the most frequent causes of patient visits to eye care practitioners.
- It is anticipated that translations of the report will be offered in many languages, including, but not limited to, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, Turkish and Vietnamese.
- The material is abstracted from the reports of ten TFOS DEWS II Subcommittees, which were Definition and Classification; Epidemiology; Sex, Gender, and Hormones; Pathophysiology; Tear Film; Iatrogenic Dry Eye; Pain and Sensation; Diagnostic Methodology; Management and Therapy; and Clinical Trial Design.
- The goals of the TFOS DEWS II Definition and Classification Subcommittee were to create an evidence-based definition and a contemporary classification system for DED.
- The term “symptoms” embraces a broad range of possible patientreported experiences associated with DED including, but not limited to, discomfort and visual disturbance.
3. Epidemiology [3]
- The TFOS DEWS II Epidemiology report examines literature on the prevalence, incidence, risk factors, natural history, and morbidity and reviewed questionnaires used in epidemiological studies of DED.
- The report summarizes the available evidence on the epidemiology of DED and provides recommendations for future needs and opportunities.
- Much of the attention has focused on Asia and Europe.
- Risk factors were categorised as consistent, probable, and inconclusive, in line with the previous TFOS DEWS report [4].
- Geographical mapping approaches will further allow the impact of climate, environment and socioeconomic factors on DED to be elucidated.
4. Sex, gender, and hormones [5]
- In fact, the female sex is a significant risk factor for the development of DED.
- Differences are present in almost every cell, tissue and organ system of the body.
- In effect, both sex and gender affect health and disease, as well as patients' perceptions about their health.
- Overall, sex, gender and hormones play a major role in the regulation of ocular surface and adnexal tissues, and in the difference in DED prevalence between women and men.
5. Pathophysiology [7]
- On the basis of peer-reviewed literature, the TFOS DEWS II Pathophysiology Subcommittee concluded that the core mechanism of DED is evaporation-induced tear hyperosmolarity, which is the hallmark of the disease.
- Two forms of DED are recognized, ADDE and EDE.
- A key event in non-cicatricial MGD is hyperkeratinization of the terminal ducts, leading to duct obstruction, duct dilatation and disuse atrophy of the glands.
- Several studies have attempted to correlate changes in tear lipid biochemistry with DED, but no definitive linkage has yet been made.
- The muco-aqueous layer overlies the apical epithelial cells and their carbohydrate-rich glycocalyx.
7. Pain and sensation [9]
- As noted by the TFOS DEWS II Pain & Sensation Subcommittee, pain can be differentiated into nociceptive and neuropathic types.
- Pain associatedwith DED is transmitted via the peripheral axons of trigeminal ganglion (TG) neurons innervating the cornea and conjunctiva.
- Polymodal nociceptors are normally silent and respond to chemical, mechanical, and thermal stimuli.
- It has been suggested that spontaneous blinking is maintained, at least in part by the continuous nerve impulse firing of eye surface cold thermoreceptors, an effect likely mediated by the connections of TG neurons with brainstem Vi/Vc neurons which in turn project to the motor neurons of the facial nerve (Cranial nerve VII).
- In parallel with these changes in peripheral nerve activity, brainstem ocular neurons at both ViVc and VcC1 regions display enhanced responsiveness.
8. Iatrogenic dry eye [10]
- As reported by the TFOS DEWS II Iatrogenic Dry Eye Subcommittee, DED can be caused by a variety of iatrogenic interventions, including topical and systemic drugs, the use of contact lenses, and ophthalmic surgical and non-surgical procedures.
- Topical medications that cause DED (Table 2) interact with the ocular surface by exerting allergic, toxic and immuno-inflammatory effects.
- Preservatives, such as benzalkonium chloride, may cause or aggravate DED through their toxic and proinflammatory effects, as well as detergent tensioactive properties.
- DED in contact lens wearers has been identified as an ongoing issue for many patients.
- Novel research into detecting early DED prior to ocular surgery, determining the benefits of prophylactic treatment, as well as efforts to establish appropriate therapeutics, and improving attempts to regulate and oversee medications, preservatives and procedures should be considered.
9. Diagnostic methodology [11]
- The TFOS DEWS II Diagnostic Methodology Subcommittee examined the research evidence for tests to quantify patient symptoms, visual disturbance, tear film stability, osmolarity, tear volume, ocular surface damage, inflammation of the ocular surface and eyelid signs (such as MGD), and recommended the key diagnostic tests and techniques.
- Diagnostic ability; minimal-invasiveness; objectivity; and clinical applicability, also known as The selection principles were.
- Such conditions and their differentiating features are outlined in the report.
- Guidance on how, and in which order, to conduct these tests are provided within the report and videos are available on the TFOS website (www.tearfilm.org).
10. Management and therapy [12]
- Expanding upon the simple belief that “diagnosis precedes therapy”means that cliniciansmustmake their best efforts to identify the degree towhich EDE, ADDE and/or other ocular surface conditions are contributing to the patient's presentation.
- The ultimate aim of DED management is to restore the homeostasis of the ocular surface and tear film, through breaking the vicious cycle of the disease.
- While aiming to identify and treat the primary source of the disease, the management of DED typically involves ongoing management to address chronic sequelae, rather than short-term treatment.
- The expected treatment trial duration before concluding failure to improve is related both to the individual's response and to the therapy being considered.
- Overall, the treatment of DED remains something of an art, not easily lending itself to a rigid, evidence-based algorithm that accommodates all patients with DED symptoms or signs.
11. Clinical trial design [13]
- In order to improve the quality of clinical trials, to optimize resources, and to increase the opportunity for novel therapeutics to reach patients with DED, the TFOS DEWS II Clinical Trials Subcommittee made the following recommendations.
- First, that studies be conducted consistent with Good Clinical Practice (GCP).
- This includes appropriate protections for the study subjects.
- Exploration of new ways to evaluate DED, such as biomarkers, may lead to improvement in DED clinical trial design and increased clarity on the efficacy of new treatments.
- This TFOS DEWS II report is dedicated to the late Professor Juha Holopainen (Helsinki Eye Lab and Department of Ophthalmology, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland), who served on the Steering Committee and Tear Film Subcommittee, in recognition of his outstanding scientific contributions to the field of the ocular surface and tear film.
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Cites background from "TFOS DEWS II Report Executive Summa..."
...For detail on dry eye evaluation and treatment, refer to the Dry Eye Workshop (DEWS II) series of reports, published in 2017.(133)...
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Cites background from "TFOS DEWS II Report Executive Summa..."
...Although, treatment of dry eye is currently standardized[5, 6], there are still unmet needs for SS patients given their disease’s more symptomatic severity....
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References
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...Please see the original report for a complete description of this figure [2]....
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...A number of drugs in systemic use, such as antihistamines, b-blockers, antispasmodics, diuretics and some psychotropic drugs, can cause a reduction in lacrimal secretion and are risk factors for DED [3,8]....
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1,152 citations
"TFOS DEWS II Report Executive Summa..." refers background in this paper
...Please see the original report for a complete description of this figure [11]....
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...Please see the original report for a complete description of this figure [7]....
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...Table 4 lists a series of management and treatment options that have all been shown to result in alleviation of presenting DED [12]....
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Frequently Asked Questions (11)
Q2. What are the contributions in "Tfos dews ii report executive summary" ?
This article presents an Executive Summary of the conclusions and recommendations of the 10-chapter TFOS DEWS II report. The entire TFOS DEWS II report was published in the July 2017 issue of The Ocular Surface.
Q3. What is the role of androgens in the development of MGD?
Androgen deficiency, in turn, predisposes to lacrimal gland dysfunction, serves as a risk factor for MGD, and is associated with the development of both ADDE and EDE.
Q4. What was the key to creating an internationally accepted definition of dry eye?
”The terminology in this definition, including diction, word order, emphasis, and accepted meaning, was critical in creating an internationally accepted definition.
Q5. How many scientific reports have been published since 1945?
since 1945, more than 575,000 scientific reports have been published which address the basic and/or clinical impact of sex on human physiology and pathophysiology.
Q6. What is the role of estrogens at the ocular surface?
In contrast to androgens, the role of estrogens at the ocular surface is less well defined, with effects that appear to be sex-, tissue-, and dose-specific.
Q7. What are the future directions to address iatrogenic DED?
Future directions to address iatrogenic DED include more in depth epidemiological studies about the risk factors, development of less toxic medications and preservatives, as well as new techniques for less invasive eye surgeries.
Q8. What causes the aqueous tears to be delivered to the lacrimal sac?
The delivery of aqueous tears to the tear sac can also be reduced by obstruction to the lacrimal ducts, which might occur in any form of cicatricial conjunctival disease, such as trachoma, ocular cicatricial pemphigoid, erythema multiforme, graft-versushost-disease and chemical burns.
Q9. What is the primary basis for tear hyperosmolarity?
In this case, early tear film breakup is hypothesized to be the primary basis for tear film hyperosmolarity initially experienced locally at the site of breakup, and with increasing severity, at some point becoming detectable in tear meniscus samples.
Q10. What is the role of the trpv1 channel in the development of the tear?
Improvements in the ability to characterize the biochemistry of the tear film may lead to the identification of new markers that can be used to diagnose, potentially predict, and even treat DED.
Q11. What factors are considered to be important for the study of DED?
Geographical mapping approaches will further allow the impact of climate, environment and socioeconomic factors on DED to be elucidated.