Lubricating eye drops – relief for your eyes!

Directly after a laser vision correction surgery, patients are recommended to lubricate their eyes very frequently for up to a month following the procedure. This enables the cornea to heal and regenerate more efficiently.

The use of lubricating eye drops is recommended not only to patients who have undergone a refractive surgery. Every day our eyes are exposed to dryness, with ubiquitous air conditioning in shops and offices, on the plane or in the car, and long hours spent looking at a computer or smartphone screen as contributing factors, which may cause the feeling of dryness or sand under the eyelids and eye redness.

Why is lubrication so important?

Appropriate eye lubrication means the proper functioning of the tear film. It is responsible not only for maintaining an adequate level of eye hydration but also for good visual acuity. If its functioning is somehow distorted, it may result in the feeling of discomfort as well as vision problems. Everything depends on which layer of the tear film the distortion occurs in.

What to take into consideration when selecting lubricating eye drops?

- Lack of artificial preservatives – any additional artificial substances contained in the eye drops may cause an allergic reaction and irritate the eyes.

- In the case of people who wear contact lenses: the possibility of using the eye drops while wearing the lenses – not all types of lubricating eye drops may be used the contact lens wearers as they may stick to the surface of the lenses and hence block the flow of oxygen and negatively affect visual acuity.

- The form of the eye drops – liquid or gel. The latter are especially recommended for the night use. If we forget to use the drops during the day, the application of the gel before going to sleep will bring immediate relief and help the surface of the eye to regenerate well during the night.

- Use – whether the drops main function is to simply lubricate the eyes or whether they also nourish and regenerate the surface of the eyes. If we have a choice, it is advisable to go for drops containing group B vitamins, vitamin A, vitamin E, D-panthenol or euphrasia. The selection of the eye drops depends on which layer of the tear film we need to restore the balance in.

If you still suffer from eye dryness despite using lubricating eye drops and maintaining proper hydration of the body from the inside, it may be a symptom of the Dry Eye Syndrome (DES). To have your eyes diagnosed, make an appointment with an ophthalmologist for a specialist ophthalmologic examination and check if the issue of DES applies to you.

During the examination, the doctor will establish the reason for your symptoms and choose the most suitable treatment for you. If you are considering having a laser vision correction surgery, remember that an advanced stage of Dry Eye Syndrome is a contraindication to the procedure.

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