Lipiflow

Hello all,
I've been recently diagnosed with MGD and was considering Lipiflow as home treatments with hot compresses and massage do not seem to be working. I was considering Optical Express until I came across this website. Could anyone recommend a dry eye specislist in the South of England? I am based in Reading.
Thanks
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admin: No advertising allowed. Please send email for advice.
sasha@opticalexpressruinedmylife.co.uk

I first contacted Optical Express for a LipiFlow treatment due to them being one of the only providers in the Manchester area. When I rang to book the appointment I was told someone would get back to me to organise a time and date but this never happened and I had to chase this up twice. The Glasgow head office were helpful but the Bridgewater service team had terrible customer service and would not get back to me as promised and no communication between them all.

When I was finally booked in for a consultation, on a Saturday morning, arriving slightly early, I was the only person there and it was quiet. I waited to see a practitioner, and when I started to ask him details around the procedure and raise any concerns, he said he was very busy and didn’t have time to talk through it all, I should read their leaflet instead.

He spent 5 minutes scanning my eyes on a machine and sent me back to reception with a leaflet about LipiFlow along with a consent form, and told me to read it and give the signed documents to reception.

I had already done hours of research on LipiFlow so I was happy to proceed with the treatment, but uneasy with the man’s attitude. I signed the agreement, paid and booked to come back another day for the procedure.

There are a couple of practitioners at that clinic so they gave me options with both. I decided to go with the woman I hadn’t met as I wanted to avoid the previous unhelpful man with an attitude. When we met on the day she was much more welcoming and tried answering my questions, but she was hesitant and didn’t seem to know a great deal.

We did a few scans, took the oil % of my eyes and started the LipiFlow but I complained I could only feel it on my upper lids (when the issue is predominately my lower). She tried moving it around a few times as it was going, but it finished eventually and I asked if we could then inspect my glands to see if they had been cleared. She said this isn’t something that can be done and you can’t check anything just after.

I was told to come back in two weeks if I still have concerns, which I did and they scanned the oil % again and one eye improved a few % and the other stayed the same. I requested they do it again and they said they’d do the worse eye, and I told them beforehand there was an issue last time and it didn’t work on my lower lids. Again they tried manoeuvring the equipment while it was working on my eyes and didn’t have much luck.

I went to my local ophthalmologist weeks after, who actually inspected my glands for me and told me they were still blocked and I still have issues with them now. I then started looking to london for more clinics and came across this forum and found that my experience wasn’t an anomaly, and although they offer a cheaper price than most, it was a waste of money.

I would recommend you spend that bit more for someone who knows what they’re doing and actually wants to help you.
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admin: Suffering with MGD after laser eye surgery in 2011, I have LipiFlow regularly, and can assure you this is not how it should be done: LipiFlow provided correctly involves more than simply sticking the cups on your eyes, and they should not be moved around if not fitted correctly! The process should have been stopped, the cups repositioned, and machine restarted.
I’m interested to know if the ‘practitioner’ was an optometrist, what training they’d had, and how many times they’d applied LipiFlow.
To discuss, please email: info@opticalexpressruinedmylife.co.uk

When I first contacted Optical Express about a LipiFlow treatment, I was told their machine was broken and to try again another time. About a month later, I was informed the machine had been fixed and so I booked myself in for an assessment. A day before my LipiFlow assessment, I received a phone call from Optical Express, informing me that their machine was broken again. I was a bit uneasy, but decided to re-schedule my assessment anyways.

When I called Optical Express to re-schedule my LipiFlow Assessment, the lady on the phone moaned to someone nearby, "Oh gosh I have one for LipiFlow, just my luck". Now if the machine repeatedly and unexpectedly failing (and my mind envisioning the machine failing whilst still attached to my eye) didn't put me off enough - this sure did.

I decided to do more thorough research on LipiFlow treatments at Optical Express. I could not find any reviews that weren't from people affiliated with Optical Express. I then stumbled upon this site, which I am grateful for. I will not be going to Optical Express for LipiFlow. No money is worth risking the health of my eyes for. I was still looking for clinics that provided LipiFlow treatment, and so contacted the admin here for a recommendation. Surprisingly, the recommended LipiFlow provider was someone I had previously made a note of, as they seemed to be extremely competent. I do not mind paying extra for my eyes.

Personally i think there must be a reason why consultant opthamologists chose to use their precious time on doing the lipiflow treatment instead of hiring optoms like they do for many other things....
lipiflow is a proffesional peice of equipment that requires a highly knowledgable expert!!!!!
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admin: I totally agree that Lipiflow should be performed by a well trained and much practised expert for it to have any effectiveness (and for safety), while a quick call to Optical Express a few minutes ago confirmed that their optoms are performing Lipiflow, not surgeons, one of the reasons for the low price!

Given that the majority of people suffering with MGD hadn't even heard of the condition before they had laser eye surgery, this excerpt from OE's website is ironic


www.opticalexpress.co.uk/eye-health/dry-eye

jack1988 wrote:
As I said previously, anyone wanting more details can contact me via email
Info@opticalexpressruinedmylife.co.uk

I have emailed you!

MGD sufferer wrote: I had lipiflow at * at about 12£ Not cheap but it really helped. Needed it again so I went to Optical Express because it was advertised at about half the cost. The person who did it wasn’t a dry eye specialist and don’t know if they were even an optician! If I didn’t have it before I’d not bother again. But lesson Learnt & I’m going: back to *. Don’t waste your time& money is my advise.
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admin: No advertising. Anyone wanting details can contact me via email

Should I rebook with someone else do you think? I noticed it was much cheaper than anywhere else, but when i look at the video online and it looks pretty simple
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admin: Please note that the quoted poster wrote 12£. This is of course a typo and should read £1,200.

The procedure itself is simple, but there is more to it than that. I have been having this for more than 4 years to treat severe MGD, a result of damaging laser eye surgery. For a few years I was treated by a renowned surgeon (quite a distance away from where I live) who wouldn’t normally perform this procedure on patients himself, and only did so because it’s me.

However, a few years ago I found a dry eye specialist only a few miles from where I live in London, and I cannot recommend him highly enough! He spends up to an hour treating me: firstly debriding the glands, a little uncomfortable but sheer bliss - like having the worst itch scratched - and after the LipiFlow he makes sure that all the the meibomian glands are clear, squeezing any that may be still blocked with a special instrument. That part is quite painful, but anyone who has MGD as bad as I do will find it’s worth it!

OE optometrists are not dry eye specialists, and this is simply another money maker for the company, offering it to their thousands of patients left with dry eyes after refractive surgery!

NB: Anyone offered a one off LipiFlow treatment in return for signing away your rights after debilitating eye surgery at OE, understand that this is not a permanent fix, and for some people it may not even work!

And the reason OE are able to undercut all other providers is because each procedure uses an expensive sterile single use activator (per eye), and in addition to their high turnover I understand that OE allegedly have a deal with J&J to buy the activators at a lower price: ’LipiTearScience Inc. was acquired by Abbott Medical Optics Inc. (“AMO”). AMO along with TearScience has joined with the world-leading ACUVUE® Brand Contact Lenses business, and the combined organization is now operating under the brand name Johnson & Johnson Vision.’

Not forgetting Steven Schallhorn’s close relationship with AMO and David Moulsdale (OE founder and CEO).

As I said previously, anyone wanting more details can contact me via email
Info@opticalexpressruinedmylife.co.uk

I had lipiflow at * at about 12£ Not cheap but it really helped. Needed it again so I went to Optical Express because it was advertised at about half the cost. The person who did it wasn’t a dry eye specialist and don’t know if they were even an optician! If I didn’t have it before I’d not bother again. But lesson Learnt & I’m going: back to *. Don’t waste your time& money is my advise.
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admin: No advertising. Anyone wanting details can contact me via email

Hi guys,

Has anybody here had lipiflow with optical express? I am due to have it done monday but then I came across this forum.

What alerted me to check for reviews were all the consent forms I have had to fill in. It's as if they are scared or something.

Any advice welcome. Oh, and it's in Manchester!

Thanks