Credit: TFOS

The Tear Film and Ocular Surface Society (TFOS) has released its much anticipated third report, continuing to explore the diagnosis and management of dry eye disease.

First presented at the recent British Contact Lens Association’s (BCLA) clinical conference in Birmingham by Professors James Wolffsohn, Lyndon Jones, Fiona Stapleton and Jennifer Craig, the report is now available as an open access special supplement of the American Journal of Ophthalmology (AJO).

The work of 80 experts from 18 countries, the TFOS DEWS III report updates the recommendations and conclusions of TFOS DEWS II and features an updated definition and a streamlined diagnostic process. It also provides a new treatment algorithm to follow based on the latest available evidence drawn from global research. Broken down into three key sections, the report aims to provide eyecare practitioners with clear guidance to follow to establish if patients have dry eye disease, find out what’s causing it and outline the best ways to manage it.

The TFOS DEWS III report also features a digest that highlights new advances in other TFOS DEWS II topics, including: sex, gender and hormones; epidemiology; pathophysiology; tear film; pain and sensation; iatrogenic dry eye; and clinical trial design.

An executive summary of the report will be submitted to the AJO for publication and will be linked to the supplement.

Also announced at the BCLA conference, Professor Etty Bitton, the director of the Dry Eye Clinic at the University of Montréal, Canada, a TFOS ambassador and participant in both the TFOS DEWS II and TFOS Lifestyle Workshops, was named Dry Eye Practitioner of the Year.