Dry Eyes
Comprehensive Eye Care
Monday-Thursday 9:00 AM–5:00PM
Friday 9:00 AM–4:00PM
Closed Saturday-Sunday
If your eyes are always red, itchy, and gritty, you might have dry eye syndrome. The team at West Broward Eyecare Associates in Tamarac, Florida, offers expert diagnosis and personalized treatment for dry eyes. They can relieve your symptoms and protect your eye health.
Your body produces tears to keep your eyes moist and clean. When you don’t produce enough tears, or if your tears aren’t high quality, you could end up with dry eye syndrome.
Your tears have water, oil, and mucus layers. Each layer has a different purpose (cleaning, spreading tears, preventing evaporation). If you don’t have enough of any part of your tears, they won’t effectively clean and moisturize your eyes.
Common Dry Eyes Symptoms
- Stinging or burning eyes
- Blurry vision when reading
- Gritty feeling
- Feeling like you have something in your eye
- Strings of mucus around your eyes
- Waking up with crusty eyes
- Red eyes
- Contact lenses are uncomfortable
- Watery eyes
Dry Eyes Q&As
WHAT CAUSES DRY EYES?
Many factors contribute to dry eye syndrome, from your environment to health conditions. Some of the common causes of dry eyes include:
- Diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and thyroid disease
- Blepharitis
- Being in a dry, smoky, or windy climate
- Spending too much time on a computer
- Wearing contact lenses for too long
- Having LASIK or another refractive surgery
- Taking medications like decongestants, beta-blockers, or diuretics
- Your risk of dry eyes increases as you age, and your hormone levels change.
HOW IS DRY EYE SYNDROME DIAGNOSED?
If you’re concerned about dry eyes, make an appointment with the team at West Broward Eyecare Associates. The experienced optometrists provide comprehensive exams to diagnose dry eye and identify the issue causing it.
They talk to you about your symptoms, lifestyle, and medical history before closely examining your eyes using a slit lamp microscope for a magnified view. Your optometrist might take a sample of your tears to assess their quality.
HOW ARE DRY EYES TREATED?
The optometrists at West Broward Eyecare Associates provide customized treatments to relieve your dry eye symptoms and address the condition causing them.
For example, while some patients find relief with artificial tears, others might need medicated eyedrops to increase their tear production or reduce inflammation. You might also benefit from having punctual plugs placed in your tear ducts to keep your tears on your eye longer.