This course is intended for beginners.

After completing this section the student should be able to do the following:

• Identify what Keratoconjunctivitis Sicca, Dry Eye Syndrome and Dysfunctional tear syndrome mean
• List 3 functions that the cornea has and how they help the eye
• List the 5 layers of the cornea
• Identify the thickness of the cornea and the corneal epithelium
• List the layers of the tear film
• Identify where each layer of the tear film is produced
• Describe the function of each layer of tear film
• Identify the pH of tear film
• List causes for tear film dysfunction and dry eye disease- include environmental, functional, and systemic
• List 4 things that a differential diagnosis of dry eyes would include
• Identify symptoms of dry eye disease
• Describe testing methods for determining presence of dry eye disease
  including tear film production testing, tear film stability testing,
  tear meniscus height testing, and tear film osmolarity testing
• Define the normal versus dry eye cutoff for Schirmer�s I and Phenol Red thread testing
• List the therapeutic options for treating dry eye disease
• Describe the methods available for punctal occlusion including how they help in dry eye disease
• List oral medications/ supplements that may be useful in treating dry eye disease

This course should take approximately 1 hour to complete.

This course has been approved by the AOA Commission on Paraoptometric Certification (CPC) for continuing education credit for use toward paraoptometric certification renewal.