Nexus of ocular motility and dry eye

To evaluate the effectiveness of vision therapy (VT) in patients with chronic presumed refractory dry eye disease (DED) and concurrent nonstrabismic binocular vision anomalies (NSBVAs). To propose an algorithmic approach to manage patients with refractory DED.

Thirty-two patients with chronic (>1 year) presumed refractory DED and NSBVA were prospectively evaluated. The baseline dry eye evaluation and comprehensive orthoptic evaluation were done. VT was administered by a trained orthoptist for 2 weeks. The binocular vision (BV) parameters and percentage subjective improvement were assessed after the VT.

On evaluation, 12 patients (37.5%) had both DED and NSBVA, and 20 patients (62.5%) had only NSBVA. Twenty-nine patients (90.62%) showed significant improvement in BV parameters following VT. Binocular near point of accommodation (median, range) improved from 17 (8-40) to 12 (5-26) mm (P value < 0.0001), and near point of convergence (median, range) improved from 6 (3-33) to 6 (5-14) (P value 0.004) with VT. Thirty-one patients (96.87%) reported symptomatic improvement after VT, and 62.5% of these showed more than 50% improvement in symptoms.

The present study confirms the beneficial role of VT in the treatment of patients with DED with concurrent NSBVA. It is essential to diagnose and treat NSBVA in patients with DED to ensure complete relief of symptoms and patient satisfaction. As there is a significant overlap between symptoms of dry eye disease and that of NSBVA, a complete orthoptic evaluation is recommended in all patients presenting with refractory dry eye disease related symptoms.