Dry Eyes: Compare Treatment Options

As mentioned above, the most prominent symptoms are dryness, burning, stinging sensations and can make your eyes red and may become watery and cause blurred vision. At times there may be mucus around or inside your eyes. You may feel a strong sensitivity to light. Some describe the sensation as having something in their eyes. For some, it is difficult to wear their contact lenses with chronic dry eyes and can make nighttime driving very tough to accomplish. These symptoms arise more in certain circumstances such as being on an airplane, or in an air-conditioned room, or as mentioned above, looking at a computer screen for quite some time, or even riding a bike. Your eyes are not producing enough lubricant to prevent your eyes from feeling such symptoms and may require extra lubricant from artificial tears such as over the counter eye drops for dry eyes.



Battling dry eyes is stressful and you want to find the fastest solution possible. Your eyes get tired faster which also makes it difficult to read, or sit and look at a computer. For some, it becomes a nuisance big enough to require a doctor’s visit. An ophthalmologist may prescribe you eye drops after doing an extensive eye exam to test your tear ducts and how much tears they are producing. There are many ways to remedy chronic dry eyes, whether that be prescribed eye drops for chronic dry eyes or over the counter eye drops for dry eye.


Why Your Eyes May Be Dry and What Treatments Can Help

There are various reasons why your eyes may be dry, and although there are different treatments available to people, it is a matter of choosing the right one, whether that be eye drops for chronic dry eyes or a more in-depth eye drop. Some ophthalmologists may find that someone has an eyelid condition causing the eyes to be so dry. Surgery can sometimes be used to correct an eyelid condition as such. Aside from that, people find that eye drops help remedy their dry eyes. You can get eye drops that reduce eyelid inflammation which starts along the edge of your eyelids and can prevent oil glands from producing oil into your tears. Antibiotics are used in certain cases to aid and reduce eye inflammation. Antibiotics can either be given in:

  • Pill form
  • In eye drops
  • An ointment

Another reason for dry eyes could be cornea inflammation which occurs on the surface of your eyes and can be controlled by prescribed eye drops containing immune-suppressing effects. These are also known as corticosteroids and are not used as a long-term treatment due to possible side effects. Some may be prescribed a dry eye medication such as inserts that mimic artificial tears and look like a clear grain of rice. You apply the hydroxypropyl cellulose insert between the lower eyelid and your eyeball. The insert will slowly dissolve while also releasing a substance that is seen in eye drops to aid in lubrication.


Cholinergic Drugs Can Help Dry Eyes

Another option for dry eye medication is tear-stimulating drugs called cholinergic which help increase tear production. You can get these as pills, gel, or eye drops. And last but not least, you can get eye drops made from your own blood. These are called autologous blood serum drops. This is a good option for people who battle severe chronic dry eyes and have had no luck with other treatments. You can have these eyedrops made by simply providing a sample of your blood which is then put through a process where the red blood cells are removed and are then mixed with a salt solution. There are different options and there is an option for everyone, it is just a matter of finding the root of the problem in order to prevent any further damage to your eyes.