NCT07554937Not yet recruiting
Blinking Exercise Study
Optimizing Blinking Exercises to Improve Dry Eye Disease in Patients With Glaucoma
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Last updated 4 May 2026
Brief summary (registry, in English)
The goal of this clinical trial is to evaluate whether a structured blinking exercise can improve symptoms and signs of dry eye disease (DED) in adults with glaucoma who are using topical intraocular pressure-lowering medications. The study will also assess the effects of the intervention on tear film stability, blink function, and participant adherence to the exercise. The main questions this study aims to answer are: Does a two-week structured blinking exercise reduce dry eye symptoms, as measured by the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) and Symptom Assessment in Dry Eye (SANDE) questionnaires? Does the blinking exercise improve objective measures of ocular surface health, including non-invasive tear break-up time (NITBUT) and blink dynamics? Researchers will compare glaucoma patients receiving topical medications (intervention group) with glaucoma suspects not using topical therapy (control group) to evaluate the effectiveness of the blinking exercise on dry eye outcomes. Participants in both groups will receive instruction on a standardized blinking exercise protocol consisting of repeated close-squeeze-open blinking cycles performed three times daily for two weeks. Participants will attend study visits at baseline, 2 weeks (post-intervention), and 4 weeks (follow-up). At each visit, participants will complete validated dry eye questionnaires and undergo non-invasive assessments of tear film stability, blink characteristics, and meibomian gland function. Adherence to the blinking exercise will be monitored using self-reported logs or reminders.
- Status (registry)
- Not yet recruiting
- Study type
- Interventional
- Enrollment
- 45 (estimated)
- First submitted
- 21 Apr 2026
- Start date
- Aug 2026
- Primary completion date
- Mar 2027
- Lead sponsor
- St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton
- Diseases
- Glaucoma
- NCT number
- NCT07554937
What you commit to
- Study type: Interventional
- Planned participants: 45
- From Aug 2026 to the primary completion date, Mar 2027
- No sites listed in no country
- Visits and tests: ask the trial team, the registry does not list them
Built from the registry fields of ClinicalTrials.gov. It describes the study, not your situation.
Who cannot take part
Copied verbatim from ClinicalTrials.gov and grouped by topic. Only the trial team decides who can take part.
Prior treatment
- Glaucoma patients who have had ocular surgery within the previous six months, contact lens wear, systemic inflammatory or autoimmune diseases affecting the ocular surface, or other ocular surface disorders such as severe blepharitis or keratoconjunctivitis sicca.
Who the study is looking for
- 18 years of age or older.
- Those in the intervention group must have a confirmed diagnosis of glaucoma and be using at least one topical antiglaucoma medication.
- Control participants must be glaucoma suspects who have not yet commenced topical therapy.
Age in the registry: 18 years to - · Sex: All · Accepts healthy volunteers
This page is information, not medical advice. Discuss any trial with your doctor.