REST provides therapeutic heat at a precisely controlled temperature – something that conventional eye warming approaches are unable to do 1. Think of warm face cloths, or microwavable bags – they sit funny on your eyes, have a wildly irregular temperature (often incapable of increasing inner eyelid temperatures to a therapeutic temperature threshold 1), and quickly become uncomfortable. The basic idea behind eye heating (or peri-ocular warming, as it’s known in the scientific literature) is that glands that secrete oil onto your eyes become clogged from infrequent blinking, or various disorders. Providing heat at a particular temperature – typically right around 40° Celsius – helps to melt these clogs and allow the natural oils of your eyes to once again coat them, soothing your eyes and providing relief 2-4. REST does exactly this: it provides heat at the precise temperature needed for eye relief, while being fully adjustable, portable, and rechargeable for maximum comfort and convenience. All these factors we also believe will lead to enhanced compliance and user engagement, aspects which have been identified as issues with current at-home thermal treatment options 5,6.
REST further distances itself from any other eye therapy on the market by providing a cooling sensation. This cooling may feel pleasant in its own right, but it capitalizes on decades of research exploring tear formation 7. Imagine keeping your eyes open and looking into the wind – soon enough, your eyes will start to water. Why? Well, it turns out there are special receptors in your eyes (technically, corneal and conjunctival TRPM8 cold receptors 7) that can detect this dryness (technically, they respond to the cooling that happens when your eyes become dry) and respond by signaling the body to start producing more tears 8,9. It would be like putting artificial tear drops in your eyes, except that they’re real, immediate tears, full of all the natural goodness your eyes want 10. The cooling modes that REST offers produce this same rapid relief, capitalizing on nothing more than your eyes’ natural response to the cold.
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Kenrick Christen J, Alloo Sabiha S. The Limitation of Applying Heat to the External Lid Surface: A Case of Recalcitrant Meibomian Gland Dysfunction. Case Reports in Ophthalmology 2017;8(1):7-12.
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Pang S-P, Chen Y-T, Tam K-W, Lin IC, Loh E-W. Efficacy of Vectored Thermal Pulsation and Warm Compress Treatments in Meibomian Gland Dysfunction: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Cornea 2019;38(6):690-7.
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Lee J-E, Kim NM, Yang JW, Kim SJ, Lee JS, Lee JE. A randomised controlled trial comparing a thermal massager with artificial teardrops for the treatment of dry eye. British Journal of Ophthalmology 2014;98(1):46-51.
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Lam PY, Shih KC, Fong PY, Chan TCY, Ng AL-K, Jhanji V, et al. A Review on Evidence-Based Treatments for Meibomian Gland Dysfunction. Eye & Contact Lens: Science & Clinical Practice 2020;46(1):3-16.
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Murakami DK, Blackie CA, Korb DR. All Warm Compresses Are Not Equally Efficacious. Optometry and Vision Science 2015;92(9):e327-e33.
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Craig JP, Nichols KK, Akpek EK, Caffery B, Dua HS, Joo CK, Liu Z, Nelson JD, Nichols JJ, Tsubota K, Stapleton F. TFOS DEWS II Definition and Classification Report. Ocul Surf. 2017 Jul;15(3):276-283. doi: 10.1016/j.jtos.2017.05.008.
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Yang JM, Wei ET, Kim SJ, Yoon KC. TRPM8 Channels and Dry Eye. Pharmaceuticals (Basel). 2018;11(4):125. Published 2018 Nov 15. doi:10.3390/ph11040125
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Belmonte C, Gallar J. Cold Thermoreceptors, Unexpected Players in Tear Production and Ocular Dryness Sensations. Investigative Opthalmology & Visual Science 2011;52(6):3888.
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Kao A, Latkany R. Use of Artificial Tears vs Cold Compresses for the Treatment of Dry Eye. Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science 2013;54(15):6052.
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Pan Q, Angelina A, Marrone M, Stark WJ, Akpek EK. Autologous serum eye drops for dry eye. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2017 Feb 28;2(2):CD009327. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD009327.pub3.