Millions of people may be affected, but they may not even know their symptoms are from dry eyes. Symptoms can include any or all of the following: blurry or fluctuating vision, ghosting of images, redness, tearing, foreign-body sensation, grittiness, scratchiness, eye fatigue or light sensitivity. When severe, this can even be disabling and can prevent you from functioning at work and may interfere with your normal daily activities.

There are many different causes of dry eyes including medications, changes in hormones, systemic diseases, and extensive computer use among others and the treatments can vary depending on the cause. They can be targeted towards improving the watery, oil, or mucous component of the tear film, or a combination thereof. The purpose of the treatment is not necessarily to cure the problem, but to control the symptoms and make you comfortable with the least amount of treatment necessary.

Artificial tears/lubricating eye drops are a good first step towards treating the disease and are available over the counter. They do vary slightly, and determining the best one depends on personal preference. If this is not sufficient, there are a number of other treatments, such as prescription medications, or decreasing tear drainage with a simple device called a punctual plug. At Clarity Eye Care and Surgery, our goal is to provide the treatment that works the best for you.