Most people have itchy, irritated eyes from time to time, but when it happens frequently, it can be a real hassle. Chronic dry eye affects tens of millions of American adults, although there are varying degrees of severity. At the Boxer Wachler Vision Institute, Dr. Brian often hears from patients with dry eye who are unsure whether their symptoms warrant treatment. Read on to learn his recommendations on this subject.
When the Cause of Dry Eye Is Unknown
For some people, the source of their dry eye is no mystery. Factors like allergies, smoking, weather conditions, medication use, or wearing contact lenses can all result in red, itchy eyes. Often, switching up lifestyle or environmental factors is sufficient to ease their symptoms, with eye drops becoming handy when certain situations are unavoidable.
However, many people are not sure what causes their dry eye. For these people, the most likely culprit is meibomian gland dysfunction (also known as blepharitis). Although meibomian gland dysfunction affects about 86% of people with chronic dry eye, it is massively underdiagnosed by some eye doctors.
The reason is that the eye doctor needs to press on the eyelids to see the oils that come out of the glands and whether they are healthy or inflammatory oils.
Meibomian glands produce an oil that makes your natural tears more productive and prevents them from evaporating prematurely. By unclogging these meibomian glands, an eye doctor can dramatically relieve the discomfort for most patients with dry eye.
Dr. Brian has discovered that prescribing eyelid cream with testosterone can be the key to dry eye treatment success since a group at Harvard Medical School discovered testosterone receptors in the meibomian glands. That’s the reason the cream works so well: in older people, the hormones, including testosterone, decline, and these glands need more testosterone.
If a Previous Dry Eye Treatment Has Been Unsuccessful
Many eye doctors begin by recommending the simplest, mildest treatments to address dry eye. This can work for some patients, but not for others. Consequently, some patients mistakenly believe that they are out of options when many other treatments could be more effective. No one should give up and “tolerate” the discomfort when that is unnecessary. Find another treatment (or doctor if they are not providing adequate solutions) to restore proper hydration to the eyes.
Whenever You Feel Treatment Is Warranted
Rather than expecting to hit a certain threshold when you know dry eye needs treatment, bring it up with your eye doctor when it starts posing regular irritation. In other words, if you are considering whether dry eye treatment is appropriate, you are probably already at the point where you can benefit from treatment.
At Boxer Wachler Vision Institute, Dr. Brian has helped many patients who thought they would never find relief for their dry eye. His patients are thankful for highly successful treatments like LipiFlow and testosterone eyelid cream. To receive a correct diagnosis and treatment from a trained professional like Dr. Brian, please call 1-310-860-1900 today.
