Dry Eye Treatment in San Mateo, San Jose, San Ramon, & Juneau

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Your Eyes Deserve
True Comfort

Dealing with the symptoms of dry eye syndrome, or dry eye disease, can be frustrating and can cause you to struggle in performing daily activities that require the use of your vision. Experiencing constant watering and irritation can be unpleasant, and you shouldn’t have to live in discomfort every day.

The good news is that relief is available, and the friendly and professional Dry Eye Therapy providers at Optical Illusions: An Optometric Practice is here to help.

Book a Dry Eye Consultation today.

What Causes
Dry Eye?

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Dry Eye Syndrome, or Ocular Surface Disease, is a chronic condition. So, the first step in determining the best treatment for your dry eyes is diagnosing the underlying cause. There are various reasons that you may be experiencing dry eyes, but the effectiveness of your tears will always play a key factor.

Some common causes of dry eyes include:

Healthy Tears are the Foundation

You may not be producing an adequate quantity of tears, or the tears you are producing aren’t high-quality enough to provide optimal eye health. The tears consist of 3 main components: water, mucous, and oil. If any of these 3 components are not balanced or present in the necessary amounts or in a high enough quality, it will lead to dry eye symptoms.

Are you blinking enough?

Blinking regularly releases a fresh layer of tear film that coats the surface of the eye and performs many functions, including:

  • Dryness prevention
  • Supplying oxygen and nutrients
  • Creating a barrier from infection
  • Healing cornea damage
  • Improving overall vision quality

Often times, you may not be blinking enough. When you are using digital devices, your blink rate goes from an average of once every 4-5 seconds to once every 10 seconds. You may also be a bad blinker, or partial blinker, which means your eyes do not close completely when blinking, which means your tears are constantly exposed to the environment and not being refreshed fully.

Symptoms of dry eye syndrome or ocular surface disease can include:

  • Dryness
  • Grittiness
  • Blurry vision
  • Stinging
  • Redness
  • Tearing
  • Light sensitivity
  • Watery eyes

Ironically, watery eyes is often a symptom of dry eyes.

When your eyes are dry, your body will overcompensate by producing excess tears, leading to a sensation of watery eyes. These watery tears do not actually provide adequate relief because it is not a quantity issue, rather it is a tear quality issue. If your eyes are filled with low quality tears, no amount of it will make a difference in alleviating your dry eye symptoms.

Rejuvenate your Dry Eye

When it comes to treating dry eye syndrome, there is no “one-size-fits-all” solution, and our team will work with you to find the treatment options that work for you. Your path to eye rejuvenation and restoration starts with our Ocular Surface Wellness Program.

Classic Wellness

For those with mild to moderate dry eye symptoms or for dry eye prevention, the classic wellness plan includes:

  • All wellness-related exams
  • One ZEST treatment
  • One Optase Dry Eye Kit
  • Choice of LLLT or TearCare

Essential Wellness

For those with moderate to severe dry eye symptoms or for dry eye prevention, the essential wellness plan includes:

  • All wellness-related exams
  • Two ZEST treatments
  • Two Optase Dry Eye Kits
  • One LLLT treatment course
  • One TearCare treatment

Deluxe Wellness

For those with moderate to severe dry eye symptoms seeking relief throughout the year, the deluxe wellness plan includes: 

  • All wellness-related exams
  • Two ZEST treatments
  • Two Optase Dry Eye Kits
  • One LLLT treatment course
  • One TearCare treatment
  • Choice of one maintenance LLLT or TearCare

Personalize Your Dry Eye Treatment

Optical Illusions: An Optometric Practice offers a variety of dry eye treatments and therapies to best suit your needs. Through the use of innovative technology like the Forma Radiofrequency and TearCare System, we can treat your specific issues related to dry and irritated eyes.

We also offer a variety of individual In-Office Procedures and At-Home Maintenance treatment methods to help you find relief. 

In-Office Treatments

Lumecca Intense Pulsed Light (IPL)

Lumecca Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) is a non-invasive treatment that treats dry eye by reducing inflammation in the meibomian glands of the eyelids. By gently heating and clearing blockages in these oil glands, IPL improves the quality of the oily component of tears, enhancing tear film stability and reducing dry eye symptoms. This treatment can lead to increased comfort and better overall eye health for those suffering from dry eye syndrome. Many patients can feel the difference with just their first session of Lumecca IPL, but some may require additional sessions for results.

This procedure is done in our office by our Certified Doctors and takes approximately 10 minutes to complete.

Forma Radiofrequency (RF) is a non-invasive, thermal pulsation treatment that treats dry eye by addressing blockages with the meibomian glands. It uses controlled thermal energy to melt and clear obstructions in these oil glands, allowing for improved secretion of the oil layer in the tear film. This helps stabilize the tear film and reduces dry eye symptoms, providing relief to individuals experiencing this condition.

This procedure is done in our office by our Certified Doctors and Technicians and takes approximately 15 minutes to complete.

Our Doctors are specially trained and certified in inserting special devices, known as punctal plugs, into the duct openings of your eyes. These minimally-invasive treatment plugs are designed to help manage how quickly your tears drain, allowing your tears to stay on your eyes longer. This process helps your eyes stay hydrated and comfortable. Temporary Collagen plugs are inserted first with long-term Silicone plugs inserted two weeks later after assessing comfort and symptom relief.

This procedure is done in our office by our Board-Certified Doctors of Optometry and only takes a couple minutes to complete.

Zocular Eye System Treatment (ZEST) is an non-invasive, in-office eyelid cleaning treatment that deeply cleans the margins of your eyelids. This procedure is a noninvasive treatment that can help improve the flow of oils from your meibomian glands, directly targeting issues related to meibomian gland dysfunction and blepharitis.

This procedure is done in our office by our Certified Doctors and Technicians and takes approximately 10 minutes to complete.

The Equinox Low-Level Light Therapy (LLLT), or cold laser therapy, is a non-invasive treatment that utilizes medical grade photobiomodulation light technology indicated for the application of diffuse periorbital heat to the eyelids. It treats conditions such as meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD), blepharitis, chalazion, styes, and rosacea.

This procedure is done in our office by our Certified Doctors and Technicians and takes approximately 15 minutes to complete.

The TearCare System is a heat and expression device designed to leverage intelligent therapeutic heat and minimally-invasive manual expression to evacuate obstructive meibomian gland disease (MGD). The TearCare system uses localized heat therapy to help patients find relief.

This procedure is done in our office by our Certified Doctors and Technicians and takes approximately 15 minutes to complete.

At-Home Maintenance

Hyaluronic Acid-based Artificial Tears

Artificial tears are a special type of eye drop that can provide the moisture and lubrication that your eyes may be lacking to help reduce inflammation.

Optical Illusions carries the full range of Optase dry eye products, which are designed with hyaluronic acid—a chemical that binds to and retains any water it contacts. By holding on to the moisture provided by these products and reducing inflammation, your eyes can start experiencing the comfort that they deserve.

These are the hyaluronic acid-based products you can expect to find at our practice:

  • Intense Dry Eye Drops
  • Comfort Dry Eye Spray
  • MGD Advanced Eye Drops
  • Hylo Relief Eye Drops
  • Hylo Night Ointment

Medicated eye drops are a different kind of eye drop compared to artificial tears in that they are formulated specifically to stimulate tear production. These require a prescription which can be written after an evaluation of the surface of the eye using our Topcon SL-D2 slit lamp and EyePhotoDoc iPad adapters.

The most effective medicated eye drops our doctors typically prescribe are:

One of the most common problems we treat in dry eye therapy is meibomian gland dysfunction. This condition can develop blockages in your meibomian glands, which are responsible for producing the oils that prevent your tears from evaporating. Heating masks and lid wipe treatments can help eliminate these blockages to help allow a healthy flow of oils to your tear film.

Optical Illusions carries the full range of Optase Heating Masks & Lid Wipes products, which contain Tea Tree Oil as a natural anti-inflammatory agent. We offer these treatments in-office or as products you can take home for your own personal use.

These are the heating masks & lid wipe products you can expect to find at our practice:

  • Protect Eyelid Cleansing Spray
  • Tea Tree Oil Eyelid Wipes
  • Tea Tree Oil Eyelid Gel Cleanser
  • Moist Heat Mask

Certain dietary supplements rich in omega-3s can help manage dry eye symptoms. These supplements can improve oil production from your meibomian glands while simultaneously decreasing inflammation around your eyes.

Find a Dry Eye Solution

If you are interested in dry eye therapy, contact us today for friendly care and an experience that will put your eyes at ease.

Dry Eye Questionnaire

Are you unsure if you’re suffering from dry eye? Our questionnaire can help you find the answer!

Our Locations

San Mateo

  • 194 Hillsdale Shopping Center
  • San Mateo, CA 94403

San Jose

  • 377 Santana Row, Suite #1115
  • San Jose, CA 95128

San Ramon

  • 6000 Bollinger Canyon Road, Suite #1104
  • San Ramon, CA 94583

Juneau

  • 9309 Glacier Hwy, Suite A103
  • Juneau, AK 99801

Complete
Family Eye Exams

An eye exam is an essential part of preventive health care. At Optical Illusions: An Optometric Practice, we invest in industry-leading diagnostic technology that gives us an unprecedented view of your eye health and vision.

With this technology, we can provide truly personalized and comprehensive eye care to patients of all ages.

Access high-quality eye care from a team that genuinely cares.

Our Testimonials

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