PURPOSETo evaluate the impact of Optive (Allergan, Irvine, CA) and Optive Advanced (Allergan, Irvine, CA) on tear film stability and quality during a one-hour observation period when compared to saline (Pfizer, Perth, WA).METHODSThis was a double-masked, cross-over study. Twenty participants attended three visits, randomly receiving either Optive, Optive Advanced or saline. Oculus Keratograph 5M (Oculus, Arlington, WA, USA), non-invasive keratograph break-up time (NIKBUT), Lipiview (TearScience Inc, Morrisville, NC, USA), lipid layer thickness (LLT) and comfort were measured prior to and 5, 15 and 60 min after drop instillation.RESULTSOptive Advanced demonstrated a significant increase in LLT between baseline (57.5 ± 12.3 nm) and both 5 min (67.5 ± 18.8 nm, p = 0.04) and 15 min (68.9 ± 17.3 nm, p = 0.04) but not 60 min (61.6 ± 14.3 nm, p = 0.47). Optive and saline were not different between timepoints for LLT (p > 0.05). There was no difference between timepoints for any of the drops for NIKBUT (p = 0.75). Comfort was significantly better at 5 min compared to baseline for Optive (8.3 ± 1.2 and 7.3 ± 1.4, respectively, p = 0.03) but not different for Optive Advance or saline (p > 0.05).CONCLUSIONSOptive Advanced increased LLT for 15 min following instillation, returning to baseline within one hour. This did not however, translate into an improvement in tear film stability over this time period. Only Optive demonstrated an improvement in comfort.