CASDES: A Computer-Aided System to Support Dry Eye Diagnosis Based on Tear Film Maps

Dry eye syndrome is recognized as a growing health problem, and one of the most frequent reasons for seeking eye care. Its etiology and management challenge clinicians and researchers alike, and several clinical tests can be used to diagnose it. One of the most frequently used tests is the evaluation of the interference patterns of the tear film lipid layer. Based on this clinical test, this paper presents CASDES, a computer-aided system to support the diagnosis of dry eye syndrome. Furthermore, CASDES is also useful to support the diagnosis of other eye diseases, such as meibomian gland dysfunction, since it provides a tear film map with highly useful information for eye practitioners. Experiments demonstrate the robustness of this novel tool, which outperforms the previous attempts to create tear film maps and provides reliable results in comparison with the clinicians' annotations. Note that the processing time is noticeably reduced with the proposed method, which will help to promote its clinical use in the diagnosis and treatment of dry eye.