Category: dry eye

Help! My Cornea Keeps Breaking

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A case of recurrent corneal erosion

Transcript for those of you who would rather read:

A middle aged female patient came in, referred by one of the ophthalmologists in our practice for dry eye treatment. She said, ‘Oh I did not know that you were an optometrist, I thought you were a dry eye specialist.’ This statement assumes that an optometrist cannot be a dry eye specialist. That is plainly wrong. However, I can only imagine that she is not alone here and it may represent a popular misconception. Contrary to what the public think, an optometrist does not only prescribe glasses or contact lenses, though these are certainly the bread and butter in our jobs. An optometrist can diagnose and treat most eye diseases, and many of us develop specialties such as dry eye, medically necessary contact lenses, low vision, vision therapy and pediatrics. For dry eye, there are probably more specialists that are optometrists than ophthalmologists. I may do another video in future about how to select the right eye doctor based on your needs and visual complaints. 

I said, ‘dry eye is a specialty that both optometrists and ophthalmologists can do. Tell me your problem and I’ll see if I can help you.’ 

Though she did have chronic dry eye in both eyes, it’s her left eye that she was mostly worried about. (You can learn more about dry eye in my previous video and blogs and I have linked them below in the video description. )

She initially had an injury of the left cornea 8 months ago because of using CPAP mask while sleeping, since then it had happened again and again, to the point she had to discontinue using CPAP. The cornea is the clear tissue on the surface of the eye and good vision relies on clear and healthy corneas. Dry eye and injury can both make this tissue sick and result in pain, tearing and poor vision.

Her first ophthalmologist performed a procedure to remove the faulty superficial layer of the cornea and put a bandage contact lens in to protect the eye. Unfortunately that resulted in a corneal ulcer, for which she had to go to the emergency room of a famous eye hospital in a different city. A corneal ulcer is an infection of the cornea, which can lead to permanent vision loss if untreated. One of the risk factors of developing corneal ulcer is wearing contact lenses, and some of the contact lens related corneal ulcers can be difficult to treat, especially with delayed treatment.

With intensive antibiotic eye drop treatment, the corneal ulcer resolved. But her nightmare of the cornea injury continued, she was having almost weekly recurrent corneal erosions in the left eye, waking up with eye pain. She could not sleep well and was afraid to open her eyes in the morning. 

So what is recurrent corneal erosion, or RCE? This is typically a tear of the superficial layer of the cornea, initially often from an injury, but subsequently can happen spontaneously. It often happens when people wake up in the morning, because a sudden opening movement of the eyelid can open up a previously weak spot in the cornea. In addition, many people have dry eyes overnight for various reasons, such as incomplete closure of eyelids, having heat or air conditioner on, using a cpap machine, etc. Having dry eyes predisposes the opening of the healed wound again. As a result, waking up with severe pain, tearing and light sensitivity in the eye is a common complaint for those with RCEs. 

How do you treat RCEs? First, it is imperative to keep dry eye under control, for the reason mentioned above. This is also the reason my patient’s ophthalmologist referred her for dry eye treatment. Second, special attention should be given to the enticing factor of the cornea wound. In her case, it would be the overnight incomplete eyelid closure and possibly the eye touching pillow or other things physically. 

She had already tried ointment at night which did not prevent RCE from happening. She used artificial tears during the day, but the relief was only temporary. She was not doing any warm compress because she needed to boil her eye mask for some minutes to reactivate it each time. She did take fish oil capsules. The fish oil and the stopping of her amitriptyline medication were the only things that seemed to be helpful to her. Yes, certain medications can cause dry eye and again you can find more information in my link below. She was using steroid drops while her cornea was healing but she could not use that forever due to side effects such as cataract and glaucoma. She tried various goggles but reported that when they moved at night she sometimes found her eye touching various parts of the goggles, which could make things worse. 

Careful examination of her eyes showed that she had meibomian gland dysfunction and ocular rosacea, which were contributing factors to dry eye. More information about these conditions can also be found in my previous blogs with the link below. 

Based on her past treatment, I recommended that for dry eye and MGD, she continue the artificial tears 4 times a day, but should buy a much easier to use eye mask which can be simply heated up in the microwave before use. She would need to do warm compress twice with 5 min each time daily. She would continue the fish oil, which was beneficial to dry eye. She could start restasis twice daily, this being an FDA-approved eye drop for chronic dry eye, but with the caveat that it could take up to 3 months to be effective, and it only worked in a small percentage of dry eye patients. In future, if her dry eye is still not controlled well, she would benefit from intense pulsed light therapy, which is unfortunately very expensive and not covered by insurance.

For RCE, I recommended that she use a large amount of ointment in the left eye at night, and put an eye shield on to prevent things from getting onto or into the eye. Some studies suggest that doxycycline can prevent corneal breakdown and reduce the frequency of RCE. So I prescribed that to her. She did have stomach upset previously when taking it for Lyme’s disease, but this was a reduced dosage and we will monitor GI side effects closely.

Patient was very thankful and I hope she got better. Long-term management is required for both RCE and dry eye. That’s it for now. Let me know your thoughts and comments. See you next time!

Links for dry eye and MGD: https://bostoneyeblink.com/2016/06/28/why-are-your-eyes-dry/

https://bostoneyeblink.com/2017/08/06/when-artificial-tears-just-dont-cut-it-other-treatments-of-dry-eye/

ocular rosacea: https://bostoneyeblink.com/2019/12/12/another-treatment-for-dry-eye-doxycycline/

systemic medications that are associated with dry eye: https://bostoneyeblink.com/2019/11/02/when-drugs-cause-dry-eye/

Doc, my eyes still hurt, now what?

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Recently a patient complained to me: ‘Doc, my eyes still hurt.’

I asked: ‘have you tried the artificial tears I recommended to you?

‘Yes, it doesn’t do any good.’

‘How many times did you put in a day?’

‘I just did that once and it did not work.’

‘I see. How about the warm compress?’

‘Not working either.’

‘How long did you do it and how many times a day?

‘Once or twice, I forgot.’

‘Are you taking the fish oil supplement?’

‘Yes. Did not feel any different.’

Here I have a patient who two months ago came to me for dry eye. He reported trying restasis from his previous eye doctor for months but no relief at all. Eye exam showed typical meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD) and poor tear film quality, without blepharitis or corneal staining. So this is a case of MGD-induced dry eye, that’s why I started him on eyelid warm compress 5 min x 2, and fish oil 1000 mg x 2 daily, with artificial tears as needed, up to 4 times daily. I asked him to follow up in 1 month. At which time he was not doing any of the things I asked, and of course his dry eye symptoms continued. After re-education, I asked him to do these consistently and follow up again in 1 month. He has probably done some of this now, but not consistently, and given up very quickly.

Rather than drilling him again for being more compliant with the treatment regimen, I offered him an alternative, which he clearly came looking for. I would like to refer him for a lipiflow treatment. I explained what it is, how it is done, and why it works. Then I told him that it’s not covered by insurance and may cost $1-2,000 for one session.

After a short moment of silence, he told me that he would like to give warm compress another try. And that he just started taking fish oil last week and would like to see if doing this for longer may help. I agreed, and asked him to return in 6 weeks to evaluate on progress.

No one likes having the dryness, foreign body sensation, redness, burning and tearing caused by dry eye. Fortunately there are effective treatments such as warm compress and artificial tears, and often these are enough to control dry eye symptoms. Unfortunately these treatments require consistent and long-term use. There is no cure for dry eye, which is a chronic condition and may require life-long management. When it comes to dry eye treatment, compliance is key. There are certainly those unlucky people who despite doing everything right still suffers from dry eye. But fortunately those are the minority.

For more information on dry eye and treatment, you can visit my previous posts and video.

https://bostoneyeblink.com/2020/05/25/dr-ding-dry-eye-disease-and-treatment/

https://bostoneyeblink.com/2017/08/06/when-artificial-tears-just-dont-cut-it-other-treatments-of-dry-eye/

https://bostoneyeblink.com/2016/06/28/why-are-your-eyes-dry/

I feel like there are rocks in my eyes

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by Juan Ding, OD, PhD

Today I had an urgent visit from an established patient. She’s in her early 50s, and has a medical history of high blood pressure, anxiety and depression. Regarding her eye history, she had narrow angles, which means she is at risk of developing a type of glaucoma (angle closure glaucoma), and for that she had laser peripheral iridotomy (LPI) before. This procedure allows fluid to communicate in the front chamber of the eye, preventing closure of the drainage system of the eye (the angle) thereby preventing high eye pressure from happening which can cause glaucoma. 

She was very anxious because since she started a new antidepressant, desvenlafaxine (Pristiq), 3 months ago, she started feeling like there were rocks in her eyes, blurry vision, more migraine and her blood pressure went up. Desvenlafaxine is a serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI), and it may cause blurry vision and angle closure glaucoma. She was very much aware of her narrow angles and worried that it’s causing glaucoma in her eyes. On her psychiatrist and pharmacist’s recommendation, she stopped the medication 2 days ago, but was now suffering from serotonin withdrawal syndrome. Her psychiatrist prescribed prozac as a transition drug, but wanted to make sure her eye pressure was not elevated. She had the medication in her car, and if the test was normal she would go and have her first dose. If not, she would not be able to start this new medication.

Fortunately, eye exam showed that she had normal eye pressure, and that her LPI was still working and her angles were open. So she was cleared to go on with another antidepressant.

But her eyes were dry, and this explained her sensation of ‘rocks’ in her eyes. She did try refresh artificial tears and felt it immediately helped her symptoms. I advised her that she could actually use these artificial tears regularly, up to 4 times daily, as long as she’s feeling the dry eye symptoms.

All too often, antidepressants and other medications cause dry eye. It’s not only uncomfortable, in some cases, causing extreme eye irritation in patients, who are anxious and depressed to begin with; but it can also cause blurry vision because of disrupted tear film. Anyone taking antidepressant is at risk of developing dry eye, and may try some OTC remedies first, like artificial tears, before visiting their eye doctors. Glaucoma is a much more rare side effect, but anyone with a history of narrow angles or glaucoma suspicion should be very careful- it’s best if they visit eye doctors routinely while on certain antidepressants. In severe cases of recalcitrant dry eye and/or glaucoma, an alternative medication may need to be considered. 

Dr. Ding | Dry Eye Disease and Treatment

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In this video I will talk about dry eye disease and its treatment. Common symptoms of dry eye disease include dryness, irritation, foreign body sensation, redness, tearing and itchiness. There are two causes of dry eye, not having enough tear volume, or having too much tear evaporation, the latter being the main cause of dry eye and mostly due to Meibomian gland dysfunction. I will discuss over the counter and at home remedies for dry eye treatment, including lid hygiene, warm compress, artificial tears. I will talk about nutritional supplement, specifically, omega-3 to help dry eye symptoms. A variety of devices can also help dry eye, including moisture goggles, lipiflow, intense pulsed light therapy, punctal plugs, neurostimulation device and scleral lenses. I will talk about the FDA-approved medication eye drops for dry eye, including Restasis, Cequa and Xiidra. And autologous serum eye drops for severe dry eye.

Finally a safe line of cosmetics for eyes

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Finally a safe line of cosmetics for those of you who have dry eye or wear contact lenses!
When you wear any eye cosmetics, mascara, eye liner, eye shadows, etc, these inevitably get into your eyes and I can see them in your tears, on your cornea and conjunctiva when you come in for eye exams. There are dozens of ingredients commonly used in cosmetics that will damage your cornea, your meibomian glands, get absorbed onto your contact lenses and cause irritation. I’ve been advising my dry eye patients and especially those who wear contact lenses to stay away from cosmetics, because of their accumulative toxic effects on the ocular surface. I feel bad that my patients cannot enjoy good, comfortable vision and look beautiful at the same time.

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But no longer! My long-time colleagues (and experts on dry eye) have developed a brand new line of eye cosmetics, banning the common toxic ingredients found in mainstream cosmetics, using a formula that has been tested by ophthalmologists and dermatologists to be safe and well tolerated by people who have dry eye and who wear contact lenses.
So now I’m happy to let my patients know that you can finally be healthy and beautiful at the same time.

Click the link eyesarethestory.com/bostoneyeblink to purchase any products on eyesarethestory.com and you will get an extra 10% off through Boston Eye Blink. Once you receive the product, send pictures of them with purchasing receipt to email: BostonEyeBlink@gmail.com and in a month you will receive a rebate of 10% off of your purchasing price.

For your first time purchase online using the code: winkwink to get a 20% off.

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2020 CAPSULE COLLECTION

 

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EYE PROOF FACIAL CLEANSER

 

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EYE PROOF FACIAL SERUM

 

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EYE PROOF LIQUID LINER

 

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EYE PROOF MASCARA TRIO SET

 

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EYE PROOF REFRESHING TOWELETTES

 

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TRINACRIA COLLECTION V.1

Dry eye caused by medications

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Do you know that among the top 100 best-selling drugs in the US, 22 of them can cause dry eye? In fact, 62% of dry eye cases in the elderly can be attributed to systemic medications, including nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), diuretics, vasodilators, analgesics/antipyretics, antiulcer agents, sulfonylureas, cardiac glycosides, anxiolytics/benzodiazepines, anti-infectives, antidepressants/antipsychotics, hypotensive agents, and antihistamines. “TFOS DEWS II iatrogenic report” has summarized research data in this area and compiled a very nice table below.

Table 1.  Systemic medications that contribute to dry eye.

 

systemic meds

The reason why these drugs cause dry eye is not completely known, but it is thought that many of them have anticholinergic activity, which means they target intentionally or unintentionally a class of proteins on cells, and these proteins are important for the secretion of tear, mucous and lipid.

Another reason why drugs can cause dry eye is that some drugs are secreted and form crystals in the tear, including amiodarone, aspirin, bisphosphonates, chloroquine, ibuprofen and clofazimine.

Eye drops, can they make your eyes dry?

The answer is yes.

We all know that artificial tear eye drops alleviate dry eye, but some other eye drops can actually cause dry eye or make it worse. One such example is glaucoma eye drops. It is estimated that they cause burning sensation and dry eye in up to 47% of patients. The reason is that most glaucoma eye drops contain a preservative called benzalkonium chloride (BAK), which is a known toxin for cells and causes inflammation on the surface of the eye, as we talked about previously (link here). Interestingly, once switched to preservative-free glaucoma eye drops, dry eye sensation reduce to 16%. It is noteworthy that because of the common dry eye issues associated with glaucoma eye drop use, eye doctors often prescribe artificial tears to be used while patients are using glaucoma drops. However, if patients use an artificial tear that contains preservatives such as BAK, their dry eye may be worse.

For people with significant dry eye, it is recommended that preservative-free forms of glaucoma eye drops be used, and preservative-free artificial tears regularly supplemented as well. If you have such issues, ask your eye doctor about the preservative-free versions of glaucoma drops.

Of note, the medicated eye drops that make dry eye worse can also be due to the active medication itself, in addition to the preservatives.

Again, “TFOS DEWS II iatrogenic report” compiled a table of eye drops that may cause dry eye. A great reference to patients and doctors both.

Table 2. Topical eye drops that cause dry eye.

topical meds.jpg

In the end, while we know that a number of systemic medications as well as topical eye drops can cause or make dry eye worse, this is not to say that we should discontinue these medications. However, it is helpful that doctors and patients are aware of the dry eye side effect of certain medications, and take measures to treat dry eye while on them, or switch to different medications if necessary.

When artificial tears just don’t cut it – Other treatments of dry eye

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The most common first-line treatment for dry eye is to use artificial tears (ATs), and these are available OTC. I talked about how to select ATs last time. Eye doctors will also recommend warm compress and lid scrub a couple of times a day, which I also talked about previously. These are really effective for majority of dry eye, which is mild to moderate. If you continue to be bothered by dry eye, there are other treatments available. This article will be about the other treatments your eye doctor may recommend or prescribe. Some of these are products you can buy in store or on the web, others have to be done in a doctor’s office. I have also provided additional links to some of the resources at the end of the article.

Rx eye drops for dry eye

Currently there are two FDA-approved medicated eye drops for dry eye disease, Restasis and Xiidra. The active ingredient for Restasis is Cyclosporine Ophthalmic Emulsion 0.05%. It is an immune suppressant that dampens inflammation on the surface of the eye in chronic dry eye. It was approved by FDA in 2003 based on findings that 15% patients showed increased tear production vs 5% patients in the control group. Caveat with Restasis is that it usually takes 2-3 months of regular using to show an effect.

Xiidra is a Lifitegrast 5% ophthalmic solution, approved by FDA in 2016. Lifitegrast blocks T cell functions, reducing inflammation, and improving dry eye signs and symptoms.

Autologous serum

This is a topical treatment using a patient’s own serum. Your blood is drawn, blood cells are removed, leaving the clear liquid portion called serum.  The serum contains numerous growth factors and hormones, which may promote healing in severe dry eye. However, because of laws and regulations related to blood products, as well as lab processing and storage issues, this is not a popular treatment at the moment; but it is effective, and may gain more insurance coverage in the future.

Intense pulsed light

This was initially used in dermatology to treat acne, skin pigmentation, hair removal and rosacea. Studies have shown that it is safe and effective in treating MGD and improving dry eye. The mechanism of action is not well understood, but may be partially due to the thermal heating of the meibum as well as effects on local blood vessels. It is recommended this procedure carried out multiple times over several months in the doctor’s office.

Punctal occlusion

This is a physical way to block the tear drainage thereby conserving the tears on the eye. Tears are naturally drained via upper and lower tear ducts, which join together and drain into the nasal cavity eventually (Figure 1). By applying a plug to the lower and/or upper puncta (Figure 1), tear will no longer drain easily and therefore stay on the eye for longer. This is a quick and easy in office procedure, and there are plugs that are permanent or temporary based on patients’ need. This treatment is most effective for aqueous deficient dry eye, where the water part of the tear is deficient.

punctal plug.jpg

Figure 1. Punctal plug blocking the lower puncta of tear drainage. Image source: http://www.allaboutvision.com/conditions/punctal-plugs.htm

 

Moisture chamber spectacles

Moisture chamber spectacles are eyeglasses that provide a humid environment and minimizing airflow over the ocular surface. These have been shown to be effective in some case reports.

Tear stimulation

A number of topical eye drops containing medication have been developed in the hope of stimulating tears, some failed clinical trials, others still in development. There is one device that is currently available, called the TrueTear™ Intranasal Tear Neurostimulator (by Allergan), that temporarily stimulates tear production. This product uses a weak electrical stimulation by two probes in the nasal cavities where the nerves are stimulated, resulting in nasal lacrimal reflex (meaning the stimulation of nerves in the nose causes tearing reflex).

Warm compress and its derivatives

Warm compress using a wet towel can be tedious as you have to repeatedly warm it up. There are a variety of microwave heatable products that maintain the temperature for 10 min so no reheating needed.

In addition to these products, a device called LipiFlow® accurately delivers heat to the Meibomian glands to therapeutic levels of 42.5 C. Clinical trials show that the single 12-min procedure of the LipiFlow® system is safe and effective for treating MGD and that the effect can be sustained for 6 months. This treatment is however very expensive and not yet covered by insurance.

Rigid gas permeable scleral lenses

These are hard, large contact lenses worn with saline bathing the entire cornea. Some patients will severe dry eye or other ocular surface diseases find this to be the last resort to alleviate their symptoms. There are a variety of scleral lens designs and brands. One of them is called PROSE (Prosthetic Replacement of the Ocular Surface Ecosystem), which has been around for quite a while and has helped thousands of severe dry eye patients.

One word about new drugs in development

Multiple drugs are in research from various approaches. I have personally been involved in research on hormones that promote Meibomian gland health and thereby have potential to be used as novel therapies to treat dry eye, including growth hormone, insulin-like growth factor-1 and testosterone. In addition, ECF843, a recombinant human protein, lubricin, has recently been licensed by Novartis for up to $ 1 billion. Large scale clinical trials are anticipated.

References and more resources

 

 

A patient’s guide to artificial tears

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A patient’s guide to artificial tears

The new TFOS DEWS II report provides the latest understanding of dry eye disease (Click here to know more about TFOS DEWS II, the most authoritative literature review worldwide on dry eye disease). How are eye doctors treating dry eye? It turns out, artificial tears are still the first line of treatment. Go to any drug store, and you will find dozens of different bottles of artificial tears. What are in them, what are the differences, and how can you pick out one that is good for you? Let’s take a look. Much of this article is based on information from “TFOS DEWS II Management and Therapy Report”.

DEWS management.png

There are two major types of artificial tears, one that supplements the aqueous, or water part of the tear, and the other that supplements the lipid part of the tear. We know from my previous post (link here) that majority of dry eye is actually caused by Meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD) which results in lipid deficit and rapid evaporation of the tear. Therefore some of the newer artificial tears contain lipid.

Aqueous supplementing artificial tears

To provide lubrication, viscosity enhancing agents are used. These are often referred to as the ‘active ingredient’ in the artificial tears. They include carbomer 940 (polyacrylic acid), carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), dextran, hyaluronic acid (HA), HP-guar, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) and polyethylene glycol. You don’t have to memorize these names at all. I have listed them here in case you want to read the ingredient list on a product and wonder what that weird name means. What matters is that they prolong the time the artificial tear stays on your eye, and that most of these viscosity agents work similarly well.

Some examples: Carboxymethycellulose is used in Refresh and TheraTears; Hydroxypropyl Cellulose is used in Genteal; Hydroxypropyl Guar is used in Systane; and Sodium hyaluronate is used in Blink.

Lipid supplementing artificial tears

These are emulsions where small lipid droplets are suspended in the water base. For example, Systane Balance contains a polar phospholipid, DMPG (dimyristoylphosphatidylglycerol), in addition to Propylene Glycol which is a lubricant; and Retaine MGD contains mineral Oil 0.5% as a lipid.

 

Gels and ointments

These are thick tears that will stay on the eye for longer, but will cause blurry vision while they stay on the eye, so mostly used at night or before bedtime. They contain high concentration of the viscosity agent, and/or mineral oil. Examples include Genteal Night time gel, Refresh PM and Refresh Lacrilube. These are good choices to use especially if you suffer from dry eyes in the morning or when waking up.

 

Preservatives vs preservative-free

Preservatives are essential these days to prolong the shelf-life of food, cosmetics, medication, as well as artificial tears. For a ½ oz (15 ml) drop bottle, it will take about a month to finish if you put 4 drops in each eye daily. Of course you will try to avoid touching the tip with finger or eye or anything except for air, and replacing the lid immediately after each use. Still, as soon as you open that sterile bottle, bacteria or fungus free-floating in the air will inevitably get in, let alone the accidental touching of hand, eyelids or other objects. In addition, many people use artificial tears in an as needed manner, this will make each bottle last longer, increasing risk of contamination. A good practice I would recommend is that once you open a bottle, label it with date of opening, and discard after 3 months even if it’s not finished.

So, preservatives allow us to store artificial tears for longer. However, they are known to cause adverse effects on the surface of the eye. The most commonly used preservative in eye drops is called benzalkonium chloride (BAK). “BAK can induce corneal and conjunctival epithelial cell death, damage the corneal nerves, delay corneal wound healing, interfere with tear film stability and cause loss of goblet cells”. To prevent these adverse actions, you should not use preserved artificial tears more than 6 times a day.

Of course, the far better alternative is to use preservative-free (PF) artificial tears. You will know if an artificial tear is PF when you see it is individually packaged in small vials. Once you open one vial, it is good for 24 hours and you should discard it after that. Examples of PF artificial tears include Refresh Celluvisc, TheraTears Liquid Gel, and Retaine MGD.

The problem with these is that they are expensive. A number of new products are now available that use one-way valve dispensers which avoid contamination and allow multiple-use of a PF bottle. I am awaiting for artificial tears to be packaged this way, and hopefully it will be cheaper than the PF tears individually packed. If you know of such a product, let me know by leaving a comment.

Another alternative to the BAK issue is to develop alternative “softer preservatives” which are less harmful to the eye. These are used in eye drops such as glaucoma medications and not just limited to artificial tears. These include oxidative preservatives (sodium chlorite; Purite® and OcuPure™ and sodium perborate; GenAqua™), polyquaternium-1 (Polyquad®) and Sof-Zia™. They cause less adverse reactions on the eye, but still, PF is better, especially if you are using the eye drops multiple times for long-term.

 

Be careful with redness relief

Some OTC eye drops provide a quick redness relief, such as Visine, ClearEye, Rohto. While they do contain lubricants for dry eye, the redness relief ingredients, which include Tetrahydrozoline or Naphazoline, should not be used long-term. These redness relief ingredients are vasoconstrictors that restrict tiny blood vessels in the eye, making the redness disappear; when used long-term, can actually cause rebound redness, making red eyes worse.

With chronic dry eye, the irritation on the surface of the eye can lead to dilation of the tiny vessels in the conjunctiva, which is the white part of the eye. Therefore the root cause of redness in this case is dry eye itself. Regular use of artificial tears helps to restore normal ocular surface environment, this will get rid of the redness. Forcing the blood vessels to constrict with medication without treating dry eye itself, such as using a vasoconstrictor, will make redness worse if you stop the medication.

In practice, we routinely recommend lubricating artificial tears, but suggest patients to use redness relief only in temporary or emergent situations, such as going to a party in a few hours. In the long term, please control your dry eye, the cause of redness in many cases.

Summary

I have given a brief guide to the various artificial tears available over-the-counter. There are artificial tears that are primarily lubricating via supplementing the water part of the tear, there are also ones that supplement the lipid part. Some are more viscous than others, and the gels and ointments are so thick that they will blur vision for hours, so they are best used before bedtime. Most artificial tears in regular eye drop bottles contain preservatives, which are harmful for the surface of the eye when used in long-term. I would like all patients to use PF artificial tears if possible, but cost is a significant impeding factor.  Finally, watch out for quick redness relief, and do not rely on these long-term, as you will find redness coming back worse once you stop using them. In reality, you may find one particular eye drop to be soothing to you while others are not so great. Don’t be afraid to try a few ones and find the best for you.