SYL1001 DP is administered in the form of eye drops for treating or preventing eye discomfort associated with dry eye and with corneal injuries, with a view to minimizing pain and improving patients quality of life

SYL1001 DP is administered in the form of eye drops for treating or preventing eye discomfort associated with dry eye and with corneal injuries, with a view to minimizing pain and improving patients quality of life. an uncomfortable feeling, greatly preventing people from performing daily activities when the disease worsens. The number of dry eye patients is increasing yearly in association with the aging of the society and the increase in VDT (video display terminal) works with personal computers and devices. Dry eye prevalence in 2009 2009 in Spain was 11.0% among adults. Dry eye was found to be more frequent in women (11.9%) than in men (9.0%), and was significantly associated with aging.1Although exact etiopathogenesis of dry eye is not known, it is believed that decrease in the tear volume on the corneal and conjunctival surface caused by either a decreased tear secretion or accelerated evaporation plays the main role. The clinical features of dry eyes include ocular discomfort, feeling of dryness, feeling of eye fatigue, hyperemia, keratoconjunctival epithelial disorders and abnormalities of vision. If these symptoms and observations progress, eventually abnormality occurs in vision. Therefore, it is quite important to treat dry eye properly at an early stage. Wetness of the ocular surface and other exposed mucosae is maintained by a continuous aqueous fluid secretion produced by exocrine glands.[2],[3],[4]In the eye, basal tear flow is adjusted to variations in environmental conditions and blinking rate. Tear flow occurring in the absence of emotional or exogenous irritant stimuli (basal tear secretion) is adjusted to variations in environmental conditions and blinking rate.5Tearing also increases markedly upon ocular surface irritation. 6Irritating stimuli are detected by mechano-nociceptor and polymodal-nociceptor trigeminal nerve endings sensitive to injurious mechanical forces, noxious heat and irritant chemicals, that evoke pain and irritation-induced tearing.7However, the neural structures responsible for sensing ocular surface dryness to regulate basal tearing rate remain undefined. Dry eye syndrome is a disease characterized by persistent dryness of the conjunctiva and opacity of the cornea. Multiple causes can AWD 131-138 lead to dry eye, which is more common in elderly people. Among diseases causing dry eye are: Ppia vitamin A deficit, Sjgrens syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis and other rheumatologic diseases, chemical or thermal burns, drugs such as atenolol, chlorpheniramine, hydrochlorothiazide, isotretinoin, ketorolac, ketotifen, levocabastin, levofloxacin, oxybutynin, and tolterodine. == Current dry eye treatment == The symptomatic relief of dry eye includes tear supplements called artificial tears which are artificial lubricants, characterized by hypotonic or isotonic buffered solutions containing electrolytes, surfactants and various types of viscosity agents.8Another treatment option is the application of tear retention devices. Implants are developed to permanently occlude the lacrimal puncta. These kinds of implants also known as punctal plugs, and could be absorbables and non-absorbables.9Additional treatment is by using moisture chamber spectacles. It has been reported that increases in periocular humidity can cause a growth of the lipid layer tear film thickness and also that spectacle wearers with dry eye have a longer inter-blink interval than those who do not wear spectacles.10On the pharmacology side current treatment is mainly focusing on addressing inflammation and tear restoration. 11Dry eye disease is the outcome of many factors resulting in inflammation of the cornea and conjunctiva. The AWD 131-138 dysfunction of the tear secretory glands AWD 131-138 leads to changes in tear composition such as hyper-osmolarity which stimulates the production of inflammatory mediators on the ocular surface. This inflammation can be initiated either by chronic irritative stress like contact lens wearing or a systemic inflammatory autoimmune disease like rheumatoid arthritis.[12],[13]Anti-inflammatory drugs are widely used for the treatment of the inflammation produced by the disease with the topical corticosteroid drops being the most common therapy. Corticosteroids can rapidly and effectively relieve the symptoms and signs of moderate or severe dry eye.14Steroids on the other hand produce severe side effects after prolonged use. The effects include risk of bacterial or fungal infection, elevated intraocular pressure and cataract formation, therefore steroids are typically used only for one to two weeks.