Dry Eye

What is dry eye?

Dry eye is an uncomfortable condition in which your tears aren’t nourishing or lubricating your eyes. This typically occurs for one of two reasons: your eyes can’t make enough tears or your tears lack the compounds that help lubricate the eyes.

While dry eye may seem like a harmless condition, it can feel debilitating for many people. Dry eye makes it difficult to read for long periods of time, look at a computer screen, or see without blurry vision.

What are the symptoms of dry eye?

You might not be able to tell if your eyes feel dry, so look out for the following dry eye symptoms:

• Eye fatigue

• Eye discharge or crusting

• Red eyes

• Eye pain

• Discomfort while wearing contact lenses

• Burning eyes

• Stinging eyes

• Blurry vision

• Watering eyes

Another symptom of dry eye is feeling like something is stuck in your eye when there’s nothing there. You can also experience bouts of excess tears followed by long periods of dry eyes.

What causes dry eye?

While many factors can cause dry eye, some of the most common include:

• Long-term contact lens wear

• Allergies

• Pregnancy

• Lasik®

• Staring at a computer screen

• Not blinking enough

• Thyroid disease

• Antidepressants

• Antihistamines

• Parkinson’s disease medications

• Oral birth control

• Certain blood pressure medications

• Hormone replacement therapy

• Cosmetic eyelid surgery

• Chronic inflammation

• Tobacco smoke

Certain irritants like air conditioning or heaters can also cause dry eye to develop over time.

How is dry eye treated?

There are many noninvasive dry eye treatments that your provider at Eye Surgeons Associates can employ to help relieve your symptoms, such as:

Medication

There are several over the counter and prescription eye drops that can help relieve dry eye symptoms.

Supplements

Adding omega-3 fatty acids to your diet can help lubricate your eyes and reduce eye discomfort.

Punctal plugs

You can have a tiny, removable plug placed in one or both of the tear ducts on your eyelids to prevent tear drainage and improve lubrication of your eyes.

Underlying condition treatment

If you have a medical condition that causes dry eye, treating the root of the problem or switching medication may help lubricate your eyes.

Contact lens change

Wearing your contact lenses less frequently or changing the type of lenses you wear may improve the symptoms of dry eye.

You can also help relieve dry eye symptoms by avoiding dry conditions, using a humidifier, avoiding ceiling fans, and resting your eyes periodically.

If dry eye is preventing you from feeling your best, call Eye Surgeons Associates.