CORNEA AND REFREACTIVE SURGERIES @ SRIKIRAN EYE HOSPITAL

Dry eye is a condition in which a person doesn’t have enough quality tears to lubricate and nourish the eye. Tears are necessary for maintaining the health of the front surface of the eye and for providing clear vision. People with dry eyes either do not produce enough tears or their tears are of a poor quality. It is reported in 40 -60 % of population. Especially seen is people above 60 years or post menopausal women. When people spend more than 3 hrs on screen , they tend to develop dry eyes. People wearing contact lens, post refractive surgery or any ocular surgery have more chances of development of Dry eyes. Patients with thyroid or Diabetes mellitus or Vitamin A deficiency may also develop dry eyes. Having a lot of tears in your eyes with dry eyes might sound odd.

Dry eye can cause scratchy feeling, like there’s something in your eye, stinging or burning feelings in your eye, Red eyes, Sensitivity to light, Blurry vision. But your eyes make more tears when they are irritated by dry eye. Dry eyes are diagnosed by slit lamp examination of eyes by ophthalmologist along with ancillary tests like measuring quantity and quality of tear film and examining tear producing glands by meibomograpohy. Treatment includes avoidance of exacerbating factors, tear stimulation and supplementation, increasing tear retention, and eyelid cleansing and treatment of eye inflammation. Lubricating eye drops play vital role. If the problem stems from an ophthalmic or systemic condition, such as an eye infection the underlying condition needs to be treated first.