LACRIMAL SYRINGING...
TEAR FLOW CONTROLLERS...

Edinburgh optometrist David Crystal MCOptom DipTp specialises in diagnosing and treating the root cause of dry, watery or uncomfortable eyes using advanced techniques at the forefront of the optometry profession.

Excessive tearing or watering eyes is called Epiphora. Epiphora occurs when either there is lack of effective drainage or because more tears are produced than are lost by overproduction.

In most cases the cause is a blocked tear duct which transport excess tears to the nose and throat. Tear ducts range in size from 0.2 to 0.9mm and if you were born with with small diameter drainage ducts, these are more prone be become silted up over time.

First-line treatment is to washout the lower ducts by passing sterile saline through them under gentle pressure. At Crystal Optometry we have found this unblocks the duct providing instant relief from epiphora in 80% of cases. Unfortunately 50% of narrow tear ducts close up again.

Now there's a simple solution to this problem. A tiny hollow insert is placed in the tear duct, holding it open

These Flow Controller plugs are used for draining tears in the treatment of epiphora caused by zero flow while the rest of the lacrimal duct is normal.and keeps a blocked punctum open assuring normal tear regulation..

A perforation through he middle of the plug allows tear flow through the punctal plug.These plugs are highly polished and coated with polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) which keeps debris from collecting on their surface and the channel from clogging.They do not need replacing.

Crystal Optometry always have Flow Controllers in stock