What is dry eye syndrome and what causes it?

Dry eye syndrome is a disease that occurs when there is consistently a lack of lubrication to the front surface of your eye. This can cause chronic inflammation and can lead to scarring of the front surface of your eye. 

The tear film is the layer of tears that lubricate your eyes every time you blink. The tear film is made up of 3 components: lipid component (oil), aqueous component (water) and the mucin component (mucous). Each one of these components serve a great purpose in the making of tears, or the lubrication of your eye. Any instability in one of these components can lead to dry eye syndrome.

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What are the symptoms of dry eye syndrome?

Symptoms include excessive tearing, itchiness, burning, the feeling of something in your eye, light sensitivity, difficulty seeing at night, soreness or a heavy feeling in your eyes.  Contact lens wear may be affected by dry eye syndrome. Please tell you optometrist or ophthalmologist if you experience any of these symptoms. 

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How is dry eye syndrome treated?

• Artificial tears  are a common way to start treatment of dry eyes. These simply add moisture to the surface of your eye. 

• Prescription medicines are another option for treating dry eyes. 

• Tear duct plugs (punctal plugs) can be inserted in your tear duct that helps drain tears out of your eye. 

• Bruder masks are an alternative way to help, this adds heated moisture to your eyes and relieves symptoms within minutes. 

• TrueTear is a device that helps you produce tears temporarily and could help you make more of your own tears regularly. 

• Omega-3 fatty acid such as Nordic Naturals ProOmega is a supplement that may help if taken regularly. 

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