Dry Eye

What is Dry Eye?

Dry eye syndrome is a common eye condition that happens when your eyes don’t have enough moisture. This occurs either because they don’t produce enough tears or because the tears evaporate too quickly.

Your eyes stay lubricated through a balanced system of tears, mucus, and oils. The meibomian glands along your eyelids produce oil that keeps tears from drying out too quickly.

When these glands don’t work properly, they either don’t make enough oil, or the oil becomes thick and crusty. Without this protective oil, your tears evaporate, leaving your eyes dry and irritated.

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Dry eye can also happen when your body simply doesn’t make enough tears. This can be related to aging, other health conditions, or environmental factors.

Extended screen time and dry, windy environments can contribute to or even cause dry eye syndrome. While changing your environment may help reduce symptoms, dry eye can become a chronic condition that requires professional care to manage effectively.

What are the Most Common Symptoms of Dry Eye?

Dry eye often causes a range of uncomfortable symptoms that can affect your daily activities. The most common signs that you might be experiencing dry eye include:

A gritty or sandy feeling, as if something is in your eye
Redness and irritation
Burning or stinging sensations
Watery eyes (your eyes’ response to irritation)
Blurry vision that comes and goes
Sensitivity to light
Difficulty wearing contact lenses comfortably

These symptoms can range from mild to severe and may worsen throughout the day. If you’re experiencing persistent symptoms, it’s important to have your eyes checked by your eye doctor at Kentucky Eye Institute, who can recommend appropriate treatment options for your specific situation.

What is Ocular Surface Disease?

The eye is one of the quickest-healing organs in the human body, with most minor scratches and irritations healing on their own in about two days. However, if you have red, itchy, gritty, or watery eyes that just don’t seem to heal, you might be suffering from one of several ocular surface diseases beyond dry eye.

While most of them won’t permanently damage your vision, they can be painful and unpleasant. Some of the most common ocular surface diseases are:

Conjunctivitis

Conjunctivitis is more commonly known as pink eye because it turns affected eyes pink or reddish. This condition occurs when the conjunctiva in the eye swells and is inflamed.

The conjunctiva is the lining of the eyelid and the whites of the eye. Bacteria, viruses, and allergies can all cause swelling and irritation in the conjunctiva.

Bacteria and viral pink eye can be very contagious. If you suspect you have pink eye, you should stay home and wash your hands regularly. For mild cases, you can treat your symptoms at home.

Blepharitis

Blepharitis is an ocular surface disease of the eyelids. It is usually caused by blockages in the oil glands at the base of the eyelashes.

People suffering from blepharitis will have swollen, red eyelids that can cause discomfort. While this condition isn’t contagious and won’t damage your vision, it is painful and requires treatment.

Blepharitis can lead to chronic pink eye or more serious infections around the eyes.

Chemical and Thermal Burns

Not all ocular surface diseases come from dysfunction in the eyes. External forces and injuries can damage these organs and cause irritation.

Two common sources of irritation are chemical and thermal burns. Chemicals in common household substances like cleaning solutions, fertilizers, nail polish removers, car batteries, or plasters can burn your eyes.

When you get substances like these in your eyes, you should wash out your eyes immediately and then seek treatment.

Unlike other ocular surface diseases, burns are an injury, not a chronic condition. These injuries should be treated as soon as possible, as the damage can be severe and irreversible.

Treatments for Dry Eye and Other Ocular Surface Diseases

Treatments for conditions affecting the surface of the eyes can range from symptom management to, in rare cases, surgical intervention. For many ocular surface diseases, the treatment goal is to stop the condition before it causes a more serious illness or injury.

Even if your eye irritation seems mild, it’s a good idea to see an eye doctor to rule out any serious conditions. Your eye doctor at Kentucky Eye Institute can even make recommendations for the best over-the-counter products to treat mild conditions.

Over-the-Counter Medications

Pink eye and blepharitis can usually be treated with over-the-counter medications and home remedies. Warm eye compresses or artificial tears can help wash out irritants and keep the eye area germ-free.

If you wear contact lenses, it’s a good idea to use your glasses instead for the duration of your treatment. Most over-the-counter eye drops are not compatible with contacts and can increase irritation rather than help.

Prescription Medications

When over-the-counter medications aren’t helping your symptoms, or if you have a more serious eye infection, your eye doctor may give you prescription medications.

Prescription antibiotics for ocular surface conditions come in a variety of forms. There are ointments and creams for external application and medicated eyedrops that you apply directly to the surface of your eye.

Surgical Procedures

In rare cases, ocular surface diseases need more serious treatments. Damage from chemical and thermal burns can be severe enough that the organs on the surface of the eye need to be replaced.

Less serious surgeries include placing plugs in the tear ducts called punctal plugs. These plugs prevent tears from draining away from your eyes, increasing the amount of moisture there. Plugs can be temporary or more long-lasting, depending on your specific eye condition.