Dry eye syndrome is a chronic lack of sufficient lubrication and moisture in the eye.
Causes
Tear production bathes the eye, washes out irritants and keeps the eye hydrated. Sometimes the eye doesn't produce enough tears, or the tears produced have an inadequate chemical composition that causes them to evaporate too quickly.
Dry eye syndrome occurs as a part of the natural aging process, a side effect of such medications as antihistamines, antidepressants and birth control pills, or living in a dry, dusty or windy climate. Dry eye is also a symptom of systemic diseases such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, or Sjogren's syndrome. Long-term contact lens wear is another cause; in fact, dry eye is the most common complaint among contact lens wearers.Incomplete closure of the eyelids, eyelid disease or a deficiency of the tear-producing glands are other causes. Dry eye is more common in women, possibly due to hormone fluctuations. Also, recent research suggests that smoking and taking multivitamins can increase your risk of dry eye syndrome.
Symptoms
Dry eye syndrome is an ongoing condition that cannot be cured, but the accompanying dryness, scratching and burning can be managed. Usually these symptoms alone are enough for your eye care practitioner to diagnose dry eye syndrome. But sometimes he or she may want to measure the actual amount of tears produced by your eyes. A thin strip of filter paper placed at the edge of the eye, called a Schirmer test, is one way of measuring this.
Most Common Treatments
Artificial tears may be prescribed for dry eye patients. These eyedrops may alleviate the dry, scratching feeling.
Sometimes too much moisture drains out of the eye through the lacrimal (tear) ducts. Temporary or permanent plugs in the lacrimal ducts usually solve this problem very well, though sometimes the ducts need surgical blockage.
If medications are the cause of dry eye syndrome, discontinuing the drug generally resolves the dry eye. In this case, the benefits of the drug must be weighed against the side effect of dry eye syndrome. Sometimes switching to a different type of medication alleviates the dry eye symptoms while keeping the needed medication. Treating the underlying eyelid disease helps as well.
.
