Osmokinetics: Defining the Characteristics of Osmotic Challenge to the Ocular Surface.

Osmokinetics: Defining the Characteristics of Osmotic Challenge to the Ocular Surface.
Klin Monbl Augenheilkd. 2020 May;237(5):644-648
Authors: van Setten GB
Abstract
The association of severe dry eye disease with elevated osmolarity in the tear film is a subject of ongoing discussions. As the absolute value of osmolarity in tear film is highly variable, the daily variation in osmolarity (DVO) has recently been proposed to further identify the osmotic stress at the ocular surface. However, the DVO alone does not explain the variations in the available published data or allow their use in diagnostic testing or therapy. We therefore investigated and evaluated further details of osmokinetics and their importance for ocular surface disease on the basis of the available literature. Additionally, osmolarity was measured in the tear samples of volunteers in the morning hours between 8 - 10 a. m., midday noon-2 p. m., and afternoon between 3 - 5 p. m., i.e., during normal office hours. The results were compared with available published data which suggested that within the DVO, the daily maximal amplitude of osmotic variation (M-DVO) and the frequency of osmotic cycles (defined as daily osmolarity cycles, DOC) could be the main factors that further characterize osmokinetics. In addition, a decisive role could be the level of osmolarity at which the variation does occurs (L-DVO). The possible effects of these characteristics ...

Source: Klinische Monatsblatter fur Augenheilkunde - May 22, 2020 Category: Opthalmology Tags: Klin Monbl Augenheilkd Source Type: research