Therapeutic inhibitors for the treatment of dry eye syndrome

ABSTRACTIntroduction: Dry eye disease (DED), defined as a multifactorial disease of tears and ocular surface, results in symptoms of discomfort, ocular irritation, visual disturbance and tear film instability. This syndrome is accompanied of ocular surface inflammation and it is produced by a deficient activity of the lacrimal functional unit. In addition, it is associated with systemic autoimmune diseases such as Sjogren´s Syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus and some drug administration. The treatment of dry eye disease is based on the typical signs and symptoms of dry eye, which are associated with hyperosmolarity, ocular surface inflammation, discomfort, visual disturbance, and tear film instability.Areas covered: This review is focused on synthetic drugs currently used in clinical practice, from phase III development onwards to treat the ocular surface signs and symptoms of dry eye disease.Expert opinion: The multifactorial disease and the lack of correlation between signs and...