keratoconjunctivitis sicca

Uh, so I believe in pres- preventing prescriptions before they even happen instead of just correcting them and watching them get worse year after year, which actually, you know, makes the eye elongate and increases risk of diseases like cataracts, glaucoma, macular degeneration, and retinal detachment.

I also believe in preventing dry eye before it gets really bad, because once it gets really bad, it's like, it just gets worse.

So instead of just waiting for a lot of these eye conditions to get worse, I believe in being proactive and trying to prevent as much of it as possible as soon as possible, because I believe in pre- preserving the eye, uh, for as long as possible.

So even as a kid, thinking about, you know, preserving your eye, you know, for when you're 60, basically.

Now, one can't help that when I'm talking with you, I'm always, like, focusing on my eyes, right? [laughs]

Yeah.

And you're like, "You're like dry eye." I'm like, "Hmm.

Are my eyes kinda dry right now?"

And to have that loosening of the bowels side effect.

and so also eating beef liver now for the vitamin a for my dry eyes absolutely that's going to help 90 to 95 percent of people with dry eyes the dry eyes will go completely away if you start eating chicken liver beef liver cod liver get a good source of vitamin a in your diet i've got a video on this channel about the best sources of vitamin a that you can get in your diet you do not want to take a vitamin a supplement you want to get vitamin a from your diet Vitamin A in your diet plus omega-3 fatty acids in your diet.

If you get enough of both of those, 90% of people's dry eyes are going to get 90% better.

Yeah, people say, Mr. Vegas, that I've got an accent.

I'm not sure what they're talking about.

thank you, Thea Pharma Canada, for supporting Blindspot.

When a patient comes in with dry eye, I imagine most of us, ophthalmologists and optometrists, open the cabinet next door to us and pick out whichever artificial tear sample happens to be there.

But do we really understand the intricate differences between the many options of artificial tears that are now available? Dry eye has become so complex, and as the complexity has increased, so have the formulations and ingredients in the artificial tears we are giving to patients.

I'm joined today by a guest who's going to help us better understand what's in the artificial tears we're giving to patients, and more broadly, to help us better understand the landscape of dry eye and how we can better treat our patients.

Jacob Rouleau is a fellowship-trained neuro-ophthalmologist and translational scientist.

He completed his MD-PhD at the University of Toronto in 2015.

He joined the faculty of Queen's University in 2020, where his research focused on meibomian gland dysfunction and dry eye disease.

He's co-founder of 26 Therapeutics, a life sciences company developing first-in-class therapies for dry eye disease and meibomian gland disorders.

So you're cutting through nerves of the cornea and sometimes you can get dry eyes and there are.

There's people committing suicide over dry eyes related to LASIK or relating to other dry eye conditions.

So, yeah, it can be extremely painful.

Not only painful, but also visually, you know, like threatening.

Yeah.

Any type of surgery for combining with brows, eye, you know, blasts, ptosis.

We need to think about the eyeball and the health of the eyeball and the tear film and any pre-existing dry eyes.

So, yes, I take that

There are so many reasons why this is so important.

So the prevalence, as we know, for dry eye in females is definitely higher.

It's a two to one ratio.

And health care is not a one size fits all approach.

But let's start with hormones, maybe.

Sure.

So from a hormone standpoint, the reason why we always get told actually the prevalence rate about how there's a two to one ratio and there's more prevalence for females having dry eye than males.

But really, what's the reason for it? Part of it is hormones.

This episode was recorded during the iHealth Summit, where the world's leading experts shared breakthrough insights in vision and holistic eye care.

What are some functional medicine approaches to common eye conditions like dry eye, macular degeneration, and cataracts? And finally, how can our nutrition and lifestyle habits impact our vision health, and what can we do to optimize that? Learn the answers to these questions and a lot more during the next interview when I'll be interviewing my mentor in neuro-ophthalmology and functional medicine, Dr.

Scott Forman.

Today, I am honored to welcome a special guest, Dr. Scott Forman.

So I'm going to give you a couple of clinical scenarios and just walk me through, walk us through what you would do with this patient.

Sure.

So let's say a patient comes in in their late 60s with a woman with dry eye and she's tried everything.

She's tried the drops, she's tried hot compresses, but her dry eye is simply not improving.

So thanks for that question.

"Is cod liver oil good for dry eyes?" This is a really good question.

Uh, so cod liver oil has been recommended for, like, generations, right? It was, like, my great-great-grandfather's, you know, cure-all.

They'd recommend, you know, cod liver oil for tons of different things.

To find out more, visit their website, visionconnection.com.au.

I built DryEye Impact because there's such a huge need out there for optometrists to treat dry eye and treat it well so patients get good outcomes.

And we have so many new technologies and solutions to help people, yet we're still kind of not maybe in that phase within like confidence in practice or not sure how to bring that advanced technology into practice.

But this is such an opportunity for us to do better in the dry ice space.

By working closely with leading suppliers and industry partners, Vision Connection offers unique opportunities that help independents stand out and succeed.

To find out more, visit their website, visionconnection.com.au.

In today's episode, we're taking a closer look at dry eye and why it deserves a place in every optometry practice, regardless of how much technology, time, or resources you currently have.

Shaina Zhang is back, and this time we're getting very practical.

Yeah.

The Dead Live in Dry Eyes.

That was the name of a poetry book I wrote when I was a teenager that if you refuse to mourn, they never go away.

And if you refuse to get angry, they never go away.

Dry Eye Disease August 2026 Phase 2-3 Results for Novel Mechanisms Evidence Cut-Off August 22, 2026 Dry eye disease treatment is moving beyond replace the tears with artificial tears.

Newer therapies are attempting to stimulate the eye's own tear flex, restore the mucin layer, slow tear evaporation, improve meibomian gland function, or target inflammation in genetically selected patients.

A date clarification is important.

AZRMD001 Phase III Study, Likaminlimab.

Likaminlimab is a topical antitumor necrosis factor alpha biologic being studied in the genotype-selected PREDICT1 Phase II-III trial.

The trial began in April, 2026, enrolls adults with dry eye disease who agree to genetic testing.

Uses three times daily dosing for approximately 29 days.

Focuses on ocular discomfort severity.