Dry eyes from Lasik or just in general

[Pete]

I had Lasik done about 10 years ago and ever since my eyes have been very dry, to the point of being problematic. Dry eyes are a common side effect of the procedure and in my case, also brought sensitivity to bright light.


I had considered restasis, which is a prescription that help some produce more of their own tears. But, they can take a couple of months to work and and require a twice a day application of stinging drops and lots of people find it hard to stick with the regimen.

So yesterday, my ophthalmologist recommended punctal plugs, which essentially block the natural drainage from your eyes. He explained that your tear glands are like the faucet and the ducts (on both the upper and lower lids and located very close to the bridge of the nose) are like the drains. So, the idea is to stop or slow the drainage in the hopes moisture will stay longer on the eye surface.

He suggested I try the temporary versions which dissolve after a couple of months. If all went well, then I could be fitted for a permanent set.

This all sounded weird and awful but they were inserted in a matter of seconds with no discomfort at all. They look like a grain of rice.

He told me I would either see almost immediate relief or none at all. And one day later, I can already tell a big difference. In fact, I woke up this morning without crusty eyes for the first time in years. My eyes feel better and my vision is certainly clearer.


Wanted to share this with anyone experiencing similar problems. Lots of people get dry eyes just from aging and other circumstances and for me, this looks like it might be somewhat of a miracle cure.

Punctal Plugs for Dry Eyes - AllAboutVision.com

[gjl]

My ophthalmologist told me the exact opposite. I've found out in the last year or so that the RK procedures I had back in 97 (done twice on both eyes) have pretty much ruined my eyes. I even had Lasik on one eye 2 years later. Ophthalmologists now call RK the gift that keeps on giving in that with the incisions they made so many years ago, the eyes never stop correcting to the point they over correct and I am blessed with unstable corneas. Another problem I have is my eyes will just start tearing for no reason, usually while I'm eating. You would not think tearing eyes is dry eyes, but it is. The tear ducts over produce tears to compensate for the dry eyes. When I inquired about plugs to stop the tearing he said that would only make my dry eyes worse. There is no sight restoring procedure that will work on me now and I wear Air Optix Night Day contacts that help stabilize my corneas and correct my vision better than any eye glass prescription can. I often hear the Dr that performed the RK on my eyes touting his services on the radio and it burns me that according to the eye Dr I see now, by then the long term bad effects of RK were known and most Drs that were doing them prior to then had stopped doing them.

[HangryHippo]

My ophthalmologist told me the exact opposite. I've found out in the last year or so that the RK procedures I had back in 97 (done twice on both eyes) have pretty much ruined my eyes. I even had Lasik on one eye 2 years later. Ophthalmologists now call RK the gift that keeps on giving in that with the incisions they made so many years ago, the eyes never stop correcting to the point they over correct and I am blessed with unstable corneas. Another problem I have is my eyes will just start tearing for no reason, usually while I'm eating. You would not think tearing eyes is dry eyes, but it is. The tear ducts over produce tears to compensate for the dry eyes. When I inquired about plugs to stop the tearing he said that would only make my dry eyes worse. There is no sight restoring procedure that will work on me now and I wear Air Optix Night Day contacts that help stabilize my corneas and correct my vision better than any eye glass prescription can. I often hear the Dr that performed the RK on my eyes touting his services on the radio and it burns me that according to the eye Dr I see now, by then the long term bad effects of RK were known and most Drs that were doing them prior to then had stopped doing them.

What is RK?

[gjl]

Radial keratotomy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It was all the rage before Lasik.

[Urbanized]

Man I am glad I waited until laser was around. I actually had Zyoptix surgery, which is/was the next generation of laser in 2005, with only my doc and the Dean A. McGee Eye Institute performing it at that point (I'm sure some other docs have picked it up by now). I won't bore with all of the details, but far more advanced (and significantly more expensive) than regular laser, and have had NONE of the problems associated with eye surgery, despite having astigmatism something like 5X the typical patient and about twice what the FDA certified the Zyoptix procedure to correct.

[gjl]

A Corneal Specialist at Dean McGee diagnosed me with Recurrent Corneal Erosion last Nov when I tore my cornea just opening my eyes one morning. They wanted to do PTK laser surgery on my eyes where they laser off the top layer of my cornea and hopefully when it grew back it would be more stable. I went to see Dr Belardo for a 2nd opinion and they told me with only one incident I didn't need it yet. They are the ones who fitted me with the contacts and so far I'm pretty happy with my vision compared to what it had become in the last 3-4 years. And so far no more corneal tears. They also said I could pretty much forger about any more vision correcting procedures for the rest of my life. I was hoping maybe I could do the Crystalens procedure because last Sept I was told I am developing cataracts. That is where you have cataract surgery but instead of a plain lens they implant a lens with you prescription. I do have to use reading glasses for computer use and reading, but my distance vision is better than it has been in years. The RK corrected my vision really good at the time I had it done and lasted for about 8 years, although only 2 years later my vision got bad in one eye and the same Dr that performed the RK did Lasik on it. By that time he had quit doing the RK. When I think about how much $$$ I've spent on vision correction and how bad my eyes are it really sucks.

[PennyQuilts]

Have any of you guys suffering from dry eyes had to use prescription drops? My dog has an auto immune problem that attacked her eyes and we've been fighting it for nearly four years. She's had to take topical Tacaralimus and before that, Cyclosporine. It really made her eyes water. She's had chronic corneal inflammation and we've been trying to avoid corneal ulcers. Her luck ran out in the last three weeks and she's gotten two minor and one significant corneal ulcer. Her eyes are rough and bumpy.

[gjl]

I use OTC drops. Fresh Kote and Systane. Even though Fresh Kote is OTC, CVS keeps it in the pharmacy and you have to ask for it.