Overview

Dry eyes is a common condition that occurs when your tears aren't able to provide adequate lubrication for your eyes. Tears can be inadequate for many reasons. For example, dry eyes may occur if you don't produce enough tears or if you produce poor-quality tears.

Dry eyes feel uncomfortable. If you have dry eyes, your eyes may sting or burn. You may experience dry eyes in certain situations, such as on an airplane, in an air-conditioned room, while riding a bike or after looking at a computer screen for a few hours.

Treatments for dry eyes may make you more comfortable. These treatments can include lifestyle changes and eyedrops. You'll likely need to take these measures indefinitely to control the symptoms of dry eyes.

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Symptoms

Signs and symptoms, which usually affect both eyes, may include:

A stinging, burning or scratchy sensation in your eyes

Stringy mucus in or around your eyes

Sensitivity to light

Eye redness

A sensation of having something in your eyes

Difficulty wearing contact lenses

Difficulty with nighttime driving

Watery eyes, which is the body's response to the irritation of dry eyes

Blurred vision or eye fatigue

When to see a doctor

See your doctor if you've had prolonged signs and symptoms of dry eyes, including red, irritated, tired or painful eyes. Your doctor can take steps to determine what's bothering your eyes or refer you to a specialist.

Causes

Tear glands and tear ducts Open pop-up dialog box Close Tear glands and tear ducts Tear glands and tear ducts The tear glands (lacrimal glands), located above each eyeball, continuously supply tear fluid that's wiped across the surface of your eye each time you blink your eyes. Excess fluid drains through the tear ducts into the nose.

Dry eyes are caused by a lack of adequate tears. Your tears are a complex mixture of water, fatty oils and mucus. This mixture helps make the surface of your eyes smooth and clear, and it helps protect your eyes from infection.

For some people, the cause of dry eyes is decreased tear production. For others it's increased tear evaporation and an imbalance in the makeup of your tears.

Decreased tear production

Dry eyes can occur when you're unable to produce enough tears. The medical term for this condition is keratoconjunctivitis sicca (ker-uh-toe-kun-junk-tih-VY-tis SIK-uh). Common causes of decreased tear production include:

Aging

Certain medical conditions, including diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, scleroderma, Sjogren's syndrome, thyroid disorders and vitamin A deficiency

Certain medications, including antihistamines, decongestants, hormone replacement therapy, antidepressants, and drugs for high blood pressure, acne, birth control and Parkinson's disease

Laser eye surgery, though symptoms of dry eyes related to this procedure are usually temporary

Tear gland damage from inflammation or radiation

Increased tear evaporation

Common causes of increased tear evaporation include:

Wind, smoke or dry air

Blinking less often, which tends to occur when you're concentrating, for example, while reading, driving or working at a computer

Eyelid problems, such as out-turning of the lids (ectropion) and in-turning of the lids (entropion)

Imbalance in tear composition

The tear film has three basic layers: oil, water and mucus. Problems with any of these layers can cause dry eyes. For example, the oil film produced by small glands on the edge of your eyelids (meibomian glands) might become clogged. Blocked meibomian glands are more common in people with inflammation along the edge of their eyelids (blepharitis), rosacea or other skin disorders.

Risk factors

Factors that make it more likely that you'll experience dry eyes include:

Being older than 50. Tear production tends to diminish as you get older. Dry eyes are more common in people over 50.

Being a woman. A lack of tears is more common in women, especially if they experience hormonal changes due to pregnancy, using birth control pills or menopause.

Eating a diet that is low in vitamin A, which is found in liver, carrots and broccoli, or low in omega-3 fatty acids, which are found in fish, walnuts and vegetable oils

Wearing contact lenses

Complications

People who have dry eyes may experience these complications:

Eye infections. Your tears protect the surface of your eyes from infection. Without adequate tears, you may have an increased risk of eye infection.

Your tears protect the surface of your eyes from infection. Without adequate tears, you may have an increased risk of eye infection. Damage to the surface of your eyes. If left untreated, severe dry eyes may lead to eye inflammation, abrasion of the corneal surface, corneal ulcer and vision problems.

If left untreated, severe dry eyes may lead to eye inflammation, abrasion of the corneal surface, corneal ulcer and vision problems. Decreased quality of life. Dry eyes can make it difficult to perform everyday activities, such as reading.

Prevention

If you experience dry eyes, pay attention to the situations that are most likely to cause your symptoms. Then find ways to avoid those situations in order to prevent your dry eyes symptoms. For instance: