Dry eyes or a dry eye symptom is a painful condition that occurs if the natural moistening of the eye surface of the tear fluid is insufficient.
This condition can occur in any person, but most often, the dry eye syndrome affects older people, and this phenomenon is more common in women than in men.
The fact is that with age, the tear glands in the eyes secrete less liquid, and, as a result, there is no normal wetting of the eye. In addition, the composition of the tear film may worsen.
In addition to age-related changes, dry eyes canbe provoked by other reasons. For example, taking certain medications for a long time. Such medicines include diuretics, some anti-allergy drugs, antidepressants, hormonal contraceptives. To provoke a decrease in the development of tear fluid can also some eye drops, which are used to treat other ophthalmic diseases.
In addition, dry eyes can be a symptomsome kind of common disease. For example, this is one of the signs of rheumatoid arthritis, certain thyroid diseases, systemic lupus erythematosus.
Very often dry eyes appear and quitehealthy people who are forced to be in unfavorable conditions. To such conditions it is possible to carry the lowered humidity of air, windy weather, necessity of long presence before the monitor, etc.
Also, the dryness of the eyes can lead to mechanical damage to the eyelids or the outer surface of the eye, which appear as a result of trauma or surgical intervention.
What are the symptoms that characterize the syndrome of dryeyes? As a rule, it is a sensation of rubbing, the presence of a foreign object in the eye. In this case, it seems to the sick that they have sand in their eyes. Sometimes there is a small and temporary decrease in image sharpness and a decrease in visual performance after a load.
Another symptom that characterizes the dryness of the eyes isthis photophobia, that is, when you try to look at the bright light in the eyes there is discomfort. Usually, people with dry eye syndrome are not tolerant of staying in air-conditioned rooms, as well as in smoky and smoky rooms.
Is this condition dangerous and can it affect the visual acuity? As a rule, there are no complications for dry eyes. In very rare cases, conjunctivitis or keratitis may develop.
However, dry eyes cause discomfort, sothis state must necessarily be corrected. An ophthalmologist can give an accurate diagnosis and pick up medications for treatment, so if you have unpleasant sensations in the eyes, you should consult a clinic.
To adjust the patient's condition, a doctorwill prescribe artificial tear preparations, which are available in the form of drops or gel. These drugs can be purchased in pharmacies and without a prescription. At the beginning of the treatment, drops should be used often - every hour. Then, as the condition improves, you can reduce the use of the drug to three to four times a day.
Sometimes it is not immediately possible to find the right onea drug of artificial tears, since there is such a thing as individual intolerance. If the application of droplets causes eye irritation, the drug will need to be replaced with another.
In some cases, ophthalmic ointments that are applied under the eyelid for the night are more effective.
With complicated conditions, an ophthalmologist canto appoint the use of more powerful drugs aimed at increasing the production of tear fluid. Sometimes it is necessary to resort to an operative method of treatment, blocking the outflow of tear fluid. And in the case when the dryness in the eyes is caused by a common disease, to eliminate the unpleasant symptom it is necessary to eliminate the cause, that is, to cure the disease provoking it.
