Photo courtesy of Dr. Nishi Mehdiratta, who is seen here in her office. Dr. Mehdiratta shares her top dry eye investments.
Powerful dry eye investments
By Nishi Mehdiratta, OD
July 16, 2025
When I first set out to build my dry eye practice, I got the same question over and over: “Isn’t dry eye just one of many things you do?”
For me, dry eye is the thing. Focusing on a single area—learning it inside and out, building our brand as a dry eye leader—has attracted dedicated patients and transformed our business metrics in a way routine exams never could.
Investing Boldly: Why My IPL Device Changed Everything
If you’re thinking of investing in dry eye technologies, here’s my honest take: Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) has been an absolute game changer. Sure, radiofrequency has its place, and we do use it, but IPL’s power to reduce inflammation is truly unmatched. The IPL technology we use in our practice is OptiLIGHT and OptiLIFT, both from Lumenis.
Editor’s Note: There are other IPL technologies to choose from including E-Eye (E>Eye) by E-Swin, C.STIM by Quantel Medical (Lumibird Medical) and Eye-Light by Topcon Healthcare, among other options.
Profit Metrics That Matter: Real Numbers from My Practice
Let’s talk dollars and cents, because that’s the data we all want.
- Amniotic membranes: $1,500 reimbursement per eye. We typically do 4–8 treatments weekly—making this not just clinically rewarding, but hugely profitable, particularly when insurance covers it and patients can’t budget for cash-pay procedures.
- Zocular treatments: We charge $250 per ZEST treatment, and do several per week. Add on take-home products and we’re easily bringing in $2,000+ per week from this line alone.
- OptiLIGHT IPL: This six-figure investment ($100,000) paid for itself within four months—faster than I dared hope. In our first year, IPL generated a staggering $1,000,000 in new revenue.
- OptiLIFT Device: A recent $130,000 investment, already showing strong demand and patient satisfaction for lid laxity and tear film improvement. We’re on track for a rapid ROI, driven in part by word of mouth and visible patient transformations.
How We Financed Our Success
Expect a six-figure price tag for quality devices—you can lease, take a loan or pay outright. I paid outright to avoid interest, and it proved to be a smart long-term choice. For any device, I recommend making a list of prospective patients beforehand. When we got the OptiLIGHT, I personally contacted those likely to benefit, and this head start is what let us reach ROI in just four months.
Breaking Even Quickly: The Secret’s in Your Chair
You don’t need a dedicated dry eye clinic to make this work—just start with the patients already in your chair. We serve a higher-income, middle-aged-plus community, but the real trick was adding targeted questions about dry eye to our intake paperwork. So many patients had undiagnosed issues. All it took was slowing down, looking for signs and having honest, informed conversations.
Team Training: Make Your Staff Champions
No device matters if your staff can’t explain it. Every time I bring in new technology, I demo it on a team member and talk about who it helps and how. Your staff must understand both the procedure and the clinical purpose; otherwise, patients won’t trust or follow through. Empower your team, and they’ll help convert interest into actual scheduled treatments.
Marketing That Works (It’s Not What You Think)
Most of our business still comes through word of mouth—happy patients who share their results with friends, family and co-workers. Our website helps too, offering extensive information on all procedures. But overwhelmingly, genuine patient satisfaction brings others in the door.
Other Articles to Explore
Common Dry Eye Investment Pitfalls: Don’t Wait for Patients to Ask
If you think dry eye patients will simply show up, you’re making a serious mistake. They’re already sitting in your chair, often unaware they can be helped. Stop sending them home with just artificial tears. Dig deeper, get curious, listen and lead with solutions—not superficial, temporary fixes.
My Final Advice: Confidence Converts
The best investment has been believing in my own expertise. Be the authority. I no longer offer artificial tears or at-home remedies as first-line therapy because, chances are, patients have already tried and failed with those approaches. Instead, I present real, evidence-based options, explain my rationale and confidently show them the path to relief.
Fifteen years ago, I would never have imagined my career would evolve into such cutting-edge dry eye treatments—and yes, even skin care. These investments have paid more than financial dividends; they’ve renewed my passion and brought life-changing solutions to my patients.
If you’re considering taking the plunge into dry eye care: be thorough, be bold, train your team and trust that if you do the work up front, your patients—and your profits—will follow.
Read more articles about building a dry eye practice in Review of Optometric Business
Nishi Mehdiratta, OD, is the owner of Luxe Eye Care in Houston, Texas. To contact her: nishi.mehdiratta@gmail.com
