Your Partner in Dry Eye Relief
What Is Dry Eye Syndrome? (DES)
Dry eye syndrome occurs when tear production and drainage are not in balance. People with dry eyes either do not produce enough tears or their tears are of poor quality. The result? Unpleasant symptoms, including itching, burning, redness, watery eyes, excessive tearing—and even eye pain. Dry eye syndrome can also increase your risk for more serious eye problems like corneal ulcers.
Without treatment or proper medication, DES can worsen over time.
What Causes Dry Eyes?
While over 80% of dry eye cases are due to blocked oil glands in the eyelids — a condition called meibomian gland dysfunction or evaporative dry eye — other factors can also cause this syndrome. These include:
Gender – the majority of dry eye sufferers are women. This tends to be caused by hormonal changes, whether through the use of contraceptives, pregnancy or menopause.
Age – there’s a higher prevalence of DES in those over 50 years of age
Environment – dry wind, dry air and dry climates can evaporate the tears. Home and car heaters, air conditioners, fans and hair dryers also cause tears to evaporate.
Medication – these include antidepressants, decongestants and blood pressure medications.
Auto-immune disorders – Sjogren’s disease and arthritis, among others.
Dry Eye Symptoms
Some consider eye discomfort to be among the worst pain imaginable, greater than even that of a kidney stone or childbirth. This is likely due to the fact that the eyes are the site of the highest concentration of nerve cells in the body, explaining why, when we get something as small as an eyelash or a speck of dirt or dust in our eye, we stop everything, rush to a mirror, and look for the lash or other foreign object stuck in our eye.
Many dry eye sufferers can attest that the discomfort caused by their underlying dry eye disease can be fairly serious. Dr. Hiten Prajapati at Triangle Family Eye Care can help relieve many of the symptoms and underlying causes that lead to the pain caused by Dry Eye Syndrome, from the mildest to the most severe.
Dr. Prajapati will conduct a full dry eye assessment to determine your symptoms, triggers, whether the causes of the pain are discernible and discuss a course of treatment to help you obtain relief from your pain due to dry eye.
How Do I Know If I Have Dry Eye Syndrome?
Do any of these symptoms seem familiar?
- Blinking Frequently
- Blurred Vision
- Burning
- Crawling on Eye Lashes
- Crusting
- Debris in Eyes
- Debris in Eye Lashes
- Difficulty Opening Eyes
- Drippy Eyes
- Dry Eyes
- Epiphora
- Eye Pain
- Eyes Feel Like Open Wounds
- Feels like Crushed Glass in the Eyes
- Foreign Body Sensation
- Gritty, Scratchy, or Sandy
- Heavy Eyes, Heavy Eye Lids
- Inflammation
- Itching
- Lids Stick to Eyes
- Menthol, Acid, and Gasoline
- Misdirected Lashes
- Mucous Discharge
- Pain or Other Discomfort when Reading, Driving, or Doing Other Activities that Require Focus
- Raw
- Redness
- Saponification, Frothy Tears
- Screwdriver in Eye at Waking
- Sensitivity to Fumes and Perfumes
- Sensitivity to Light (Photophobia)
- Sensitivity to Temperature
- Stinging
- Tearing
- Tired Eyes
- Tissues Under Eye Lids
- Twitching Eye Lids
- Watery Eyes
- Wetness
Suffering from dry eye syndrome not only diminishes your quality of life but also makes daily activities such as reading, doing sports, or driving a struggle.
Think you have dry eye syndrome? Get to the root of your eye discomfort by contacting us today.
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Learn More about Dry Eye Syndrome | FAQ
Treatment should be sought early to avoid gland atrophy and other complications. Visit our practice to ensure you have a personal treatment plan designed for you.
Don’t wait for dry eye condition to deteriorate. Take action today by booking an appointment with Triangle Family Eye Care in Morrisville today.
Dry Eyes Syndrome Treatment
Treating Dry Eye Syndrome and the many related conditions can be frustrating for both doctors and patients. Patients typically want and expect immediate relief from symptoms and doctors usually only have a small arsenal of tools (warm compresses, lid wipes, lubricating drops, topical or oral antibiotics, topical steroids, and lid massage) from which to choose in prescribing treatment.
The exception here is the rare, experienced physician who specializes in corneal and external diseases, and has had specialized training and experience with more aggressive dry eye modalities. Dr. Hiten Prajapati’s focus in his practice is to treat even the most severe symptoms resulting from Dry Eye Syndrome in its many forms.
Dry Eye doctors have many tools in their arsenals. Dr. Prajapati of Triangle Family Eye Care has experience with many of the more specialized dry eye treatment options such as Lipiflow, Blephex, Intese Pulsed Light, and Radio Frequency. Whether your symptoms and dry eye complaints are sporadic and minor or constant and severe, Dr. Prajapati has training and experience in so many dry eye modalities that he will be able to help you!
Let Dr. Hiten Prajapati and the talented, experienced staff help get you started on the path to real long-term relief from dry eye.
