The SANDE questionnaire is a short Visual Analog Scale (VAS) assessment that quantifies both severity and frequency of current dry eye symptoms. The SANDE is comprised of two questions, and each question employs a 100-mm horizontal linear VAS. The measurement of symptom frequency ranges from "rarely" to "all of the time", and the symptom severity from "very mild" to "very severe". Data collected from the SANDE questionnaire was calculated by multiplying the frequency score by the severity score and obtaining the square root. The result is the Overall SANDE score which ranges from 0 to 100 with 100 being the maximal amount of dry eye symptoms and 0 being the minimal amount of dry eye symptoms.

Conjunctival staining with Lissamine Green dye (1%; LG) staining in each eye was conducted using the slit lamp. A single drop of 1% Lissamine Green dye was applied to the inferior conjunctival fornix of both eyes. The conjunctivae was examined with the slit lamp at ×10 magnification, using a neutral-density filter. The conjunctiva was graded for each eye from 0 to 3 based on the density of punctate staining in the nasal-bulbar and temporal-bulbar zones. Total scores ranged from 0 (no staining) to 6 (most severe staining) with a lower score representing a more desirable outcome.

Participants assessed their tolerance to the administration of the study drug, utilizing a VAS. The VAS is a 100-mm horizontal line with verbal descriptors at either end. Participants placed a single slash mark across the horizontal line between the end labeled "completely intolerable" (0 mm) and "easily tolerable" (100mm).