Everything You Need to Know About Dry Eyes

Dry eyes Perth in Western Australia is a common condition that occurs when your eyes are not able to provide adequate eye lubrication. There are a lot of things that can cause inadequate tears in your eyes. For example, you can have dry eyes if you produce poor-quality tears or if you do not produce enough tears. This condition can make you feel uncomfortable. Your eyes may burn or sting if you have dry eyes. Certain situations such as airplane, air-conditioned rooms and riding a bike can cause dry eyes. You can also experience dry eyes after looking at a computer screen for a long time. Dry eyes treatments may make you feel comfortable. Dry eyes treatments may include eye drops and lifestyle changes. You will likely need to take the necessary measures to control the situation.

Symptoms

Symptoms of dry eyes may include a stinging, scratchy, or burning sensation in your eyes, sensitivity to light, stringy mucus around and in the eyes, eye redness, difficulty putting on contact lenses, a sensation of something uncomfortable in the eyes, difficulty with driving at night, blurred vision, watery eyes and eye fatigue. There are other symptoms not mentioned here.

When to see a doctor

Prolonged symptoms of dry eyes such as painful eyes, red eyes, irritated eyes, are an indication that you need to see a doctor. Your doctor will take the necessary measures to determine what is bothering your eyes.

Causes

The main cause of dry eyes is lack of enough tears. Your doctor will do dry eyes test Perth in Western Australia and try to find out the cause before prescribing medication for your condition. Tears are a complex mixture of fatty oils, water and mucus. The mixture helps to make the surfaces of eyes clear and smooth and it also protects eyes from infection. The cause of dry eyes for some people is reduced production of tears. For others, it is increased evaporation of tears and an imbalance in the makeup of the tears.

Reduced tear production

You can have dry eyes when you are not able to produce enough tears. Keratoconjunctivitis sicca is the medical term for this condition. Some of the common causes of decreased production of tears include: certain medications such as hormone replacement therapy, decongestants, and drugs for high pressure, aging, laser eye surgery, certain medical conditions such as diabetes, thyroid disorders, lupus and more, damage of the tear gland from inflammation and radiation can also cause reduced tear production.

Increased tear evaporation

Some of the main causes of increased tear evaporation include smoke, wind, dry eye, eyelid problems, blinking less often and more.

Imbalance in composition of tears

Tears are composed of mucus, water and oil. Problems with any of these components can cause dry eyes.

Risk factors

Some of the common risk factors of dry eyes Perth in Western Australia include being older than 50. The production of tears tends to diminish as you get older. Being a woman is also a risk factor because the condition is more common in women than men. Another risk factor of dry eyes is eating a diet that is low in vitamin A.