Decongestants especially target the eyes and nasal areas because the symptoms they treat are itchiness and runniness of the eyes and nose, and they do this by drying out those areas. Antihistamine eye drops for eye care are not any better. If you suffer from allergies and dry eye problems, consider checking with your doctor for something other than over-the-counter drugs. Allegra can often help with both problems because it is site-specific in its effects.
If possible, taking an allergy formula without the decongestant can also help greatly. These are generally prescribed for those with chronic high blood pressure, heart attacks, and migraines, and one of their primary side effects is dry, itchy, and painful eyes. Watch out for this! Beta blockers which end in -ol cause dry eye by reducing aqueous production from your lacrimal gland.
Some others to be aware of are hydrochlorothiazide HCTZ and other diuretics. You can do something about this. Talk to your physician about switching to another high blood pressure medication that does not cause dry eyes to such an extent.
I am in no way saying that you should go off your blood pressure medication, because you're probably on that for a very good reason and a heart attack is a lot more deadly than dry eyes. Just make sure you talk to them about alternatives. Speaking of alternatives to medication, a healthy diet, exercise and hydration can really make quite an impact on blood pressure as well!
Click here to read more about the benefits of a healthy diet and check out this article all about exercise. Amoxicillin and Penicillin can also both cause itching, dryness, and redness of the eyes. For some, they even cause problems with balance — so while taking oral antibiotics, consider adding in some Vitamin C and acidophilus probiotics to counteract some of the worst side effects. Antibiotics can also wreak havoc on the gut, destroying even the healthy bacteria our gut needs to thrive.
Unless you have a life or sight threatening condition that requires them, just say no! With that being said, many eye doctors use Doxycycline and other tetracycline antibiotics for the actual treatment of rosacea and meibomian gland dysfunction.
While this antibiotic will destroy your gut flora, just like all of the other ones, Doxycycline actually has an anti-inflammatory component that can be very helpful for those dealing with certain types of dry eye. Taken in small, short doses, this can be a great addition to an MGD routine. However, we recommend avoiding this where possible and following the changes recommended in our book, Rethinking Dry Eye Treatment.
If you are on a regular regime of over-the-counter pain meds such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen, you may also experience dry eye symptoms. If so, try lowering the dosage slightly and drink more water to help solve the problem instead. Prescription pain relievers are no different and can even be worse for dry eyes. Homeopathic remedies, such as arnica montana , can be great to have in your pain relieving arsenal.
Anything that messes with the hormones in the body is going to cause dryness issues. This is often the reason why many women in menopause experience dryness. A few examples of potentially problematic medications include Hormone Replacement Therapy HRT predominantly with estrogen, or even progestin. This is pretty commonplace in a lot of women that are postmenopausal. So, you might be in this group. There are additional ways that you can combat the negative effects of HRT, and these include hydration and eating a well balanced, vegetable rich diet.
In addition to this, birth control can be problematic for those with dry eyes as well. If you can go without, we recommend it. There are other ways to prevent conception, including natural family planning, that are very effective for many people. Click here to read more in the book, Taking Charge of Your Fertility.
These medications are proton pump inhibitors and help with GERD acid reflux. Acid reflux, gas, and other digestive issues can usually be resolved by figuring out what foods or drinks are causing the issue, and eliminating those.
In fact, some of these medications can be incredibly dangerous for you in the first place, so eliminating them completely is your best option. Click here to read more about the benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar. The most well known medication to be of issue is Cytoxan. When going through chemotherapy, there is not much you can do except combat the side effects as best you can.
This can be done by using preservative-free artificial tears like Oasis as needed and ensuring that your diet and hydration are top notch during this time is crucial, and doing your best to stay on top of your dry eye routine will surely help you get through the dry eye symptoms.
These are often used to manage schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. However, antipsychotic medications can cause dry eye as well. They usually decrease your aqueous secretion and symptoms are usually dose dependent. So, if you take a higher dose, of course you're more likely to have dry eye. If you find that the dry eye is causing detriment to your life, discuss other options with your doctor.
This is the biggest no-no of the list. Accutane is taken for severe acne, often in teenagers and adults, but it can have dire side effects. It actually can kill off your meibomian glands and cause them to atrophy, leaving you with no lipid layer of tears, disrupting your tear film, and leading to severe evaporation and very dry eyes.
Accutane is just a form of vitamin A in really high doses, which is definitely not good for your eyes. Avoid this at all costs and look for other ways to help calm your acne, such as using the Heyedrate Tea Tree Oil Soap.
This includes night creams and other anti-aging moisturizers and serums containing retinol in any form. Accutane is a brand name for isotretinoin, a vitamin A derivative used to treat severe cystic acne in those who have failed with other treatments.
It is a retinoid and works by decreasing facial oil secretion, thereby drying up and preventing acne breakouts. This medication has been used for years to treat severe acne, often in teenagers, and the side effects can be devastating both at the time and later in life.
However, the manufacturer does have it available in other countries, and the US has multiple generic and brand name options available. The FDA approved Accutane in for the treatment of severe acne unresponsive to conventional therapies this may include topical creams and gels, and oral antibiotics. It was given a pregnancy X category rating, meaning it is completely contraindicated during pregnancy due to devastating birth defects. Two years later, the FDA mandated the company give this medication a black box warning due to the risk of fetal deformity.
In the years after, a pregnancy prevention program was put into place in an attempt to ensure that patients were not taking the medication while pregnant. Psychiatric events and suicidal tendencies were also a big deal during this time, and something that the manufacturer and the FDA worked to become more aware of and decrease.
With this program, all patients with a prescription for any version of isotretinoin had to show a negative pregnancy test each month before being able to refill their prescription. Blood work is also required regularly while on this medication due to the potential for organ toxicity. The history of this medication is incredibly rocky, as you can see.
However, so many people have been prescribed this medication and have taken it for the treatment of severe acne. Accutane contains isotretinoin, a retinoid and vitamin A derivative. The dosage is dependent on the condition itself and the weight of the individual. So, is isotretinoin or any of the branded versions safe to take? This is all relative, of course. Someone with severe acne that is devastating for their self esteem may say that this medication is absolutely worth any side effect that occurs.
However, we know of countless patients who have suffered in the wake of taking this medication years ago, and now have to deal with other conditions that have become impossible to control. Because isotretinoin effectively works by shrinking the sebaceous glands of the skin, this medication can lead to severe, and sometimes irreversible, dry eye disease. The meibomian glands of the eyelids are sebaceous glands that normally produce healthy oils for the tear film. When these can no longer function, the tears evaporate quickly and the eyes become very dry.
This is a known side effect of Accutane. The medication is secreted into the tears by the lacrimal gland, and is known to induce atrophy of the meibomian glands, which then leads to not only changes in lipid secretion but also increases in tear osmolarity that affect tear film stability.
Simply put, this medication can cause issues with both the lacrimal gland system responsible for the watery portion of your tears and the meibomian glands which produce the oil for your tears. In some people, this is not an issue and the damage is mild, however there are many people in which the damage done is permanent and severe. Patients who suffer from dry eyes on a daily basis may have a common condition called dry eye syndrome. If you believe you have chronic dry eye syndrome , call the experienced eye specialists at Wang Vision Institute.
Ming Wang and Dr. Josh Frenkel can evaluate your symptoms and provide noninvasive treatment options in Nashville, TN. Dry eye occurs when your natural tears are not sufficient to lubricate your eyes.
This may be due to the quality or quantity of your tears. Because tears are essential to our overall eye health, you may experience inflammation and swelling, as well as blurry vision.
Many people feel as if they have sand in their eyes. Dry eye syndrome may even lead to an overproduction of tears to alleviate the condition.
Other dry eye symptoms include:. Dry eye syndrome is usually attributed to an underlying health condition or environmental issue. Once these problems are diagnosed and addressed, dry eye symptoms may reduce or disappear. When you meet with a specialist at Wang Vision Institute, we can perform a health assessment and ask about your lifestyle habits. This will help us determine the source of your dry eyes so we can move forward with treatment in Nashville, TN:.
Too much screen time: we understand that desktops and smartphones are an everyday part of our lives. Your doctor can take steps to determine what's bothering your eyes or refer you to a specialist. The tear glands lacrimal glands , located above each eyeball, continuously supply tear fluid that's wiped across the surface of your eye each time you blink your eyelids.
Excess fluid drains through the tear ducts into the nose. Dry eyes are caused by a variety of reasons that disrupt the healthy tear film. Your tear film has three layers: fatty oils, aqueous fluid and mucus. This combination normally keeps the surface of your eyes lubricated, smooth and clear. Problems with any of these layers can cause dry eyes.
Reasons for tear film dysfunction are many, including hormone changes, autoimmune disease, inflamed eyelid glands or allergic eye disease. For some people, the cause of dry eyes is decreased tear production or increased tear evaporation. Dry eyes can occur when you're unable to produce enough water aqueous fluid. The medical term for this condition is keratoconjunctivitis sicca ker-uh-toe-kun-junk-tih-VY-tis SIK-uh. Common causes of decreased tear production include:. The oil film produced by small glands on the edge of your eyelids meibomian glands might become clogged.
Blocked meibomian glands are more common in people with rosacea or other skin disorders. If you experience dry eyes, pay attention to the situations that are most likely to cause your symptoms. Then find ways to avoid those situations in order to prevent your dry eyes symptoms.
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