Chronic dry eye is annoying, painful, and can make you self-conscious about how you look. Fortunately, it can be treated through a number of customized dry eye treatment plans available at Dr. Diamante’s clinic in Providence, RI. If you suspect that you may have dry eye because you’ve been in situations similar to the following, come in to find out how to treat your dry eye!

You work outside and have to take frequent breaks due to itchy eyes.

If you work outdoors, you may have experienced seasonal allergies. Allergies may make you experience similar symptoms to dry eye, so it can be easy to dismiss and ignore. However, climate can exacerbate dry eye symptoms by drying out your tears with things like dust, smoke, and dry air.

It’s difficult to work at a computer because your eyes are teary and uncomfortable.

Staring at a computer screen for too long can cause your eyes to get dry. This occurs because you stop blinking regularly.  When you don’t blink enough, your eyes aren’t supplied with the proper amount of tears or nutrients. If you already have dry eye, going through this repeatedly can make your workday a living nightmare. Dry eyes make it impossible to get work done.

You are spending a fortune on artificial tears.

Dry eye can be temporarily treated using artificial tears, but they can’t solve the problem completely. In the short term, they are great for relieving the discomfort of itchy, red eyes, but not in the long-term. If you find yourself constantly running out of eye drops because you have to use them constantly, it’s time to find a permanent solution for your dry eye.

How to treat Dry Eye

Dry eye can be brought on by a lot of things like air quality, screen-time, pregnancy, side effects of some medications, and prolonged use of contacts.However, sometimes the problem is a fundamentally physical one. If a patient’s body does not produce enough of the main components that make up tears, then the tears won’t stay on the surface of the eye long enough to nourish it.

For example, the tears may not have a high enough oil content. It’s important to have enough oil in your tears because it stops them from evaporating too quickly. This is often due to the oil-producing glands becoming clogged because of waxy deposits. When this happens, the waxy deposits are gently broken up using an ultrasonic device, melted with hot compresses, or through a combination of both.

Plugs inserted into the drainage system of the eye can also force tears to stay on the eye’s surface for longer. These plugs are removable by a professional.

Sometimes, a patient simply does not produce enough tears, making it a quantity versus quality issue. Your doctor may suggest eating omega-3 fatty acids or foods that are rich in omega-3 fatty acids to help stimulate tear production.

Dry eye can be frustrating, but there are options! Contact Dr. Diamante to request an appointment and to learn more about treating your dry eye!