Why when 80% of people with dry eye have MGD, is all the research aimed at aqeuous???

[sazy123]

Ughhh this is really frustrating.

So the treatments that are the furthest along: CF-101, and Sar 118 etc are aimed at aqueous deficiency!! and people who will benefit from these drops probably already benefit from restasis!

What about the rest of us 80% who either dont find any relief from the current treatments i.e. hot compresses.

I just dont understand why there isnt more focus on MGD!

[Hopeful2]

Hi,

I feel your frustration. . . I thought that restasis was supposed to help with the inflammation related to MGD. I distinctly recall my eye doc mentioning that he didn't think I was aqueous deficient and that restasis should help with the inflammation that is being caused by the meibomian glands.

Hope time is helping you feel better

[Jenn1]

Tell me about it! If enough of us demand more and better treatments for mgd then its only a matter of time before they find more effective cures. Nice to have you back. :0P x

[bakunin]

I feel a similar frustration.

They don't even do a drop to replace lipids or something like that.

[Jenn1]

Hey people, start messaging pharma companies, eye specialists, these lipiflow type gadget companies and labs etc... asking for better treatments, for home use, and affordability... that will get them going for sure!!

[littlemermaid]

They don't even do a drop to replace lipids or something like that.

Totally. Why is no one working on compatible lipid replacement drops since this appears to be the main problem? This would protect the eye surface better as well. (Actually I think Moorfields is, but don't have inside info...) How can we not have made progress on the biochemistry of the human tear when there's so much money to be made.

I understand the 'inflammation causes mgd' perspective; we have blitzed with stronger steroid + azithromycin, the mgs are great. But it's difficult to move on from there with cyclosporine + tear substitute that doesn't cause sensitivity problems and damage the surface in chronic use.

[farmgirl]

OK all of you MGD sufferers. I am on this forum because I suffer from Sjogren's so I can't try this my self but I just looked up MGD (because I didn't know what it was) and it says that part of the cycle of the problem appears to be related to bacterial infection of the meibomian glands. Not being really familiar with this disorder I am not sure which comes first the chicken or the egg. Briefly here is what I read about the condition although I am sure you sufferers could write a book.

MGD causes reduced lipid production for the ocular surface, leading to tear evaporation and dry eye. Decreased tear production reduces the eye’s ability to flush bacteria from the lid margins, enabling bacteria to infect the meibomian glands and eyelash follicles, in turn further degrading the tear film.

To date there have been very few good treatment options for patients with Meibomian Gland Dysfunction. Oral tetracyclines (minocycline and doxycycline), which have both an antimicrobial and an anti-inflammatory effect, have been shown to reduce the bacteria flora and improve the quality of the tear film over a few months. In dry eye associated with MGD, we need to supplement and stabilize the lipid deficient tear film, while also protecting the corneal epithelium and provide symptomatic relief of dry eye.

So here's my thought for any of you interested in a natural way to rid yourself of any possible infection. There is a plant (a weed actually) called plantain (not to be confused with those banana thingies). This plant is found almost in any location in North America and Europe. It is often a lawn weed but if you can't find any look in the alleys along the edge where the gravel meets the grass.

Here are a couple of links if you are interested to find out more about it http://www.altnature.com/gallery/plantain.htm or http://voices.yahoo.com/health-benef...04.html?cat=68

This link has a good picture of what you would be looking for but the real tell tail sign is that all of the veins come from the stem of the leaf which would is visible from the back of the leaf. They do not branch off like a regular leaf vein. So if you are not sure look at the back of the leaf for 5-7 prominent veins running the length of the leaf from stem to almost tip. http://www.prairielandherbs.com/plantain.htm

Anyhow this plant is so powerful a poultice made from it is capable of clearing up blood poisoning. It is a powerful antibiotic, astringent, draws out pus and foreign bodies etc. and it works FAST almost to the point of being miraculous

To use just boil the fresh leaves no more than a couple of minutes until just soft, like spinach and place directly on the lids overnight when you go to sleep. Probably the easiest would be to use a sleep mask to hold them in place with a small piece of plastic over top to keep them from drying out. You would only have to do this for 3 nights max to know if it is going to work. In the meantime continue with any other regime you might be on regarding hot compresses etc. but if it is going to make a difference you should be able to tell within a week if not days.

If anyone tries this please contact me and let me know if it helps, I know it would be the first thing I would try having read what I have read about MGD and knowing what I know about plantain and the best part is it is FREE!!

[mgshutterbug]

Safety and efficacy trials?

I'd be really afraid to try that before many clinical trials for safety and efficacy had been completed. I haven't looked up the link you listed yet, but will when I'm finished on the forum tonite. How much testing has been done to support this?

[farmgirl]

Clinical trials? Surely you jest. None, it is nothing more than a very powerful plant that won't hurt you and might help. You will never see it studied for safety and efficacy because it is not a drug. It is just an AMAZING plant, nothing more.

I cured an abcess the size of a fifty cent piece on the top of the head of my neighbour's dog in 36 hours. He had about 1/2 inch of fluid on the top of his ears. Within 10 minutes of placing the poultice he had a rivulet of pink puss running down the side of his face and dripping onto his paws. Within 12 hours the abcess was the size of a dime and the fluid was gone, another 12 hours later it was the size of the end of a pencil. Within 36 hours it was gone, closed...finished. The dog is still alive and it didn't cost a dime.

I have seen it pull a sliver out of the leg of a thorougbred horse. He was destined to never race again if surgery was done and that was scheduled for Monday after a week of futile attempts by the vet to extract it. The poultice was placed Sat PM the sliver was out by Sun. The surgery was cancelled for Monday. The horse is still alive and it didn't cost a dime. I could go on and on.

If it doesn't help it won't hurt and it won't cost a penny to try...read the links. If a bacteria is the underlying problem I see no reason why it won't work. If nothing changes in 2 or 3 days just putting a poultice on at night it isn't going to help, no need to keep applying it, you just need to make sure that you have the correct plant.

[sazy123]

My MGD is not caused by a bacterial infection lol. It is caused by major inflammation. All these treatments being studied are aimed at aqueous defficiency.....

AND NO DOUBT WHEN APPROVED WILL BE TOUTED TO WORK FOR MGD AS WELL (LIKE RESTASIS IS)... but it probably wont work. So 100% of people with dry eye will try these new treatments and only 15% will benifit, like restasis. They make the money regardless. Restasis is given to everyone with dry eye, but only 15% bennfit. I do not believe it helps for MGD.

Im on it again and i have inflammation so ill let ya know but im not holding my breath.

I just dont under stand the logic in aiming all the research at aqeous dry eye, when 80% of us have MGD???!!!! Can anyone explain this?????

[Rebecca Petris]

Wall Street has a logic of its own, not "closely associated with" medical logic.