Overview of Demodex Blepharitis and Latest Treatments
Ben Gaddie, OD, FAAO discusses demodex blepharitis, common symptoms, and prior treatment options that struggled to control their reproductive cycle.
Summary
Ben Gaddie,OD, FAAO, an optometrist from Louisville, Kentucky, recently discussed demodex blepharitis and treatment advancements in a recent roundtable he moderated. In this series, Gaddie will review two patient cases to explore the complexities of treating demodex blepharitis.
He emphasizes that demodex blepharitis is a crucial part of ocular surface disease, playing a major role and mimicking conditions like dry eye or meibomian gland dysfunction. Demodex, the most common ectoparasite found on humans, is challenging to visualize with the human eye or even under the best slit lamp magnification due to its size and location in eyelash follicles, meibomian glands, and other sebaceous glands. He explains how the life cycle of demodex mites is short; previous therapies, like tea tree oil, were insufficient to disrupt their short reproductive cycle. He introduces new treatments that break through the life cycle, offering control of demodex blepharitis in six weeks. The treatment involves using the drug twice a day for six weeks, showing significant reduction in collarets.
This summary was AI-generated and edited for clarity.
