2023-11-01 08:37:37
by Health Editorial Staff
Dry eye disorder, due to reduced tear production, especially affects women. If underestimated, it can also cause blurred vision, as well as pain. The Mostraci Rosa initiative in collaboration with 400 eye care centers until December
It can interfere with many daily activities, such as using the computer, reading, driving. In general, one person over fifty in four suffers from dry eye syndrome, but this disorder, due to a reduced production of tears, favors women, afflicting one in two after the age of 45, as many as 90 percent of women in menopause. . Hence the Vedeci Rosa initiative to inform and raise awareness about dry eye disorders, aimed at women and doctors, which involves several Italian eye care centers.
What is it and symptoms
At the base of dry eye there is a compromise of the tear film, the film that protects the eyes from the external environment, resulting in inflammation of the surface of the eye, which causes disorders.
Among the most common symptoms: burning, itching, irritation, sensation of a foreign body in the eye, discomfort with light (photophobia).
Edoardo Villani, associate professor in Ophthalmology at the University of Milan, explains: Dry eye is a multifactorial pathology of the ocular surface, characterized by mostly chronic-relapsing symptoms, in many cases capable of having a significant impact on the quality of life. and to interfere with numerous daily activities, such as using the computer, driving, reading, and wearing contact lenses. The pathology is much more frequent in women than in men, especially after the age of 40-50 – continues the expert -. Sexual hormones play a significant role and dry eye can significantly influence women’s health both in physiological conditions, such as menopause, and in pathological conditions, such as gynecological or oncological diseases.
Because women are more affected
The fact that it is mostly women who suffer from it, up to four times more than men, is also due to variations in sexual hormones – explains Professor Antonio Di Zazzo, associate professor of Visual Diseases, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Campus Bio -Doctor from Rome– . Estrogens and androgens, in fact, influence the production of all the components of the tear film, to the point of altering its balance and favoring the onset of dry eyes. Today, thanks to scientific research, the ophthalmologist can diagnose alterations in the tear film precisely and quickly, having access to cutting-edge diagnostic tools which allow the quantification of tear secretion and the evaluation of the stability of the tear film and which allow the identification of personalized way for each patient the most appropriate therapy.
The initiative
The Vedeci Rosa awareness initiative, aimed at women and doctors, created in collaboration with numerous ophthalmology centers throughout Italy, with the support of AbbVie, intends to promote greater awareness among women about dry eye disorders; provides, among other things, the distribution of information material in hospital ophthalmology centers and, furthermore, the updating of the various medical figures who follow patients to encourage a multidisciplinary and “feminine” approach to dry eye syndrome.
Therapy
Dry eye syndrome, among the most ignored and underestimated disorders of modern society, in the most serious cases can have a significant impact on one’s life with pain and visual blurring – underlines Professor Rita Mencucci, Ophthalmology Clinic of the Careggi University Hospital. from Florence – . It is necessary for women to know that hormonal changes and dry eye may be related. In the presence of specific symptoms such as burning, sensation of a foreign body in the eyes, difficulty working on the computer for long periods or driving in the evening, you should contact your doctor immediately. The good news, in fact, is that dry eye can be treated quickly with very effective local therapies that restore the tear film and allow you to reduce symptoms and improve quality of life.
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November 1, 2023 (changed November 1, 2023 | 07:37)
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