Most people at some point in their life will suffer from dry or watery eyes. Reynolds Opticians now offer specialist dry eye clinics for the diagnosis and management of dry eye, Blepharitis, and red eyes. We can provide you with a bespoke ocular hygiene treatment regime and full aftercare.
What is Dry Eye?
Dry eyes occur when the eyes either don’t make enough tears, or the quality of the tears produced is reduced, which means the tears can evaporate rapidly from the surface of the eye, causing the eye to dry out. Often, the reduced tear quality is a result of blockage or inflammation of the oil glands within the lid margin. When the surface of the eyes dries out, they become inflamed. They appear red, and the whites of the eyes can appear to be pink and swollen. Normally, the eyes become very irritable. When seen on the microscope, using a fluorescent dye called fluorescein and a special cobalt blue light, the denuded surface areas can be seen as green specks on the surface of the eye.
If the main problem is a lack of tear production, then the term ‘keratoconjunctivitis sicca’ or ‘aqueous deficiency’ is used. However, if the main problem is poor tear quality (but plenty of them) as a result of inflammation or blockage of the oil-secreting glands in the lid margin, then the condition is called ‘obstructive meibomian gland disease’, more commonly referred to as blepharitis. See symptoms
Dry Eye Assessment
Most people at some point in their life will suffer from dry or watery eyes. Reynolds Opticians now offer specialist dry eye clinics with bespoke ocular hygiene treatment regimes.
Symptoms
- Foreign body sensation/feels like something is in the eyes
- Eyes feel ‘gritty’ – often worse in the mornings
- Blurred vision
- Burning sensation in eyes
- Irritable eyelids
- Light sensitivity
- Redness of the whites of the eyes
- Painful eyes
- Excessive watering
In Dry Eyes, why do the eyes sometimes water excessively? How can the eyes be dry if they are watering all the time? This a paradox which is explained as follows.
Blinking spreads a tear film over the surface of the eye – the eyelids do the opposite to what a windscreen wiper does on a car. The eyelids spread a thin film of tears over the front of the eye.
When there are not enough tears, or if the quality of tears is poor, the surface of the eye becomes dry, and this causes inflammation. Special receptors on the surface of the eye are then stimulated by this inflammation, which causes a ‘reflex tear production’.
This leads to the main tear glands to literally ‘switch the tap on’ in an attempt to wet the dry surface. The result is often the production of excessive watery tears ( as opposed to oily tears) which results in the watering of the eyes.
Treatment
We also offer an innovative treatment option for sufferers of Blepharitis, a common underlying cause of dry eye problems. BlephEx™, the newest treatment for blepharitis, is an in-practice procedure performed directly by your Optometrist. With BlephEx™ your Optometrist thoroughly and precisely eliminates the scurf and bacterial debris, the main causes of inflammatory lid disease. The procedure is both quick and painless.
BlephEx™ will reduce or alleviate these chronic and debilitating symptoms with treatments typically being repeated at regular monthly intervals depending on the severity of the disease. By eliminating the inflammatory etiology of blepharitis, the overall health of the eyelid is improved. Patients can then begin to produce more of their own tears and finally enjoy a life free from the chronic and irritating symptoms associated with blepharitis and its subsequent dry eye disease.
Ask us about Blephex treatments and how this could help reduce your symptoms of dry eye and blepharitis.
- What is Dry Eye?
-
What is Dry Eye?
Dry eyes occur when the eyes either don’t make enough tears, or the quality of the tears produced is reduced, which means the tears can evaporate rapidly from the surface of the eye, causing the eye to dry out. Often, the reduced tear quality is a result of blockage or inflammation of the oil glands within the lid margin. When the surface of the eyes dries out, they become inflamed. They appear red, and the whites of the eyes can appear to be pink and swollen. Normally, the eyes become very irritable. When seen on the microscope, using a fluorescent dye called fluorescein and a special cobalt blue light, the denuded surface areas can be seen as green specks on the surface of the eye.
If the main problem is a lack of tear production, then the term ‘keratoconjunctivitis sicca’ or ‘aqueous deficiency’ is used. However, if the main problem is poor tear quality (but plenty of them) as a result of inflammation or blockage of the oil-secreting glands in the lid margin, then the condition is called ‘obstructive meibomian gland disease’, more commonly referred to as blepharitis. See symptoms
Dry Eye Assessment
Most people at some point in their life will suffer from dry or watery eyes. Reynolds Opticians now offer specialist dry eye clinics with bespoke ocular hygiene treatment regimes.
- Symptoms
-
Symptoms
- Foreign body sensation/feels like something is in the eyes
- Eyes feel ‘gritty’ – often worse in the mornings
- Blurred vision
- Burning sensation in eyes
- Irritable eyelids
- Light sensitivity
- Redness of the whites of the eyes
- Painful eyes
- Excessive watering
In Dry Eyes, why do the eyes sometimes water excessively? How can the eyes be dry if they are watering all the time? This a paradox which is explained as follows.
Blinking spreads a tear film over the surface of the eye – the eyelids do the opposite to what a windscreen wiper does on a car. The eyelids spread a thin film of tears over the front of the eye.
When there are not enough tears, or if the quality of tears is poor, the surface of the eye becomes dry, and this causes inflammation. Special receptors on the surface of the eye are then stimulated by this inflammation, which causes a ‘reflex tear production’.
This leads to the main tear glands to literally ‘switch the tap on’ in an attempt to wet the dry surface. The result is often the production of excessive watery tears ( as opposed to oily tears) which results in the watering of the eyes.
- Treatment
-
Treatment
We also offer an innovative treatment option for sufferers of Blepharitis, a common underlying cause of dry eye problems. BlephEx™, the newest treatment for blepharitis, is an in-practice procedure performed directly by your Optometrist. With BlephEx™ your Optometrist thoroughly and precisely eliminates the scurf and bacterial debris, the main causes of inflammatory lid disease. The procedure is both quick and painless.
BlephEx™ will reduce or alleviate these chronic and debilitating symptoms with treatments typically being repeated at regular monthly intervals depending on the severity of the disease. By eliminating the inflammatory etiology of blepharitis, the overall health of the eyelid is improved. Patients can then begin to produce more of their own tears and finally enjoy a life free from the chronic and irritating symptoms associated with blepharitis and its subsequent dry eye disease.
Ask us about Blephex treatments and how this could help reduce your symptoms of dry eye and blepharitis.
Introducing Blephex
Blephex is a new treatment for dry and irritated eyes. It’s painless and can reduce the symptoms associated with Blepharitis and dry eyes. Ask your optician for more information.