AAOpt 2025 recap: ODs provide new clinical findings on dry eye

Presenting ODs provided the latest and greatest in dry eye and ocular surface disease at this year's American Academy of Optometry's Academy 2025 meeting in Boston, Massachusetts. Here are a few key takeaways:

Cecelia Koetting, OD, FAAO, DipABO, shared insights from her lecture on regenerative medicine, focusing primarily on ocular surface disease and dry eye treatment. She highlighted the evolving landscape of medical interventions, emphasizing the growing range of biologics and treatment options. Key discussion points included various regenerative medicine approaches such as autologous serum, amniotic membranes, cenegermin-bkbj (Oxervate), photobiomodulation, low-level light therapy, and intense pulsed light (IPL) treatments.

Koetting emphasized the importance of staying current with emerging technologies and recommended that colleagues attend conferences and visit their exhibit halls, engage with representatives from smaller companies, and follow leading researchers in the field.

Shane Kannarr, OD, presented a poster examining the short-term effects of perfluorohexyloctane ophthalmic solution (Miebo), which demonstrated rapid patient relief, improvements within 5 minutes, continued improvement over 15 days, and potential for becoming a first-line therapy for dry eye.

A significant portion of his discussion centered on the neurological aspects of dry eye, emphasizing the following:

• All cases of dry eye have a neurological component.
• Lacrimal and meibomian glands are brain-driven.
• Neurosensory elements are critical in understanding and treating dry eye.
• Nerve damage can lead to hypersensitivity or neurotrophic conditions.

Jacqueline Theis, OD, FAAO, highlighted that inflammation is a response to damage, not the primary cause. She advocated for identifying and addressing the root cause of ocular surface issues rather than simply treating symptoms.

Her expertise spans neuro-related vision issues, and she noted that many patients experience significant dry eye challenges alongside neurological conditions.