subject: Over-the-counter Eye Drops - Are They All The Same? [print this page] Not all drops for your eyes are created equalNot all drops for your eyes are created equal. Avid swimmers can tell you this from their own experience. Chlorine in the pool water is an eye irritant that can be relieved with a certain type of eye drop.
Drops for your eyes perform certain functions to address symptoms from various causes of dry eye or eye irritation. One important piece of information to know is that there are preservatives in most of the drops that will help reduce the propensity for infections.
'All of these drops have a preservative in them that reduces the risk of infection,' elucidates ophthalmologist James Salz, MD, spokesperson for the American Academy of Ophthalmology and clinical professor of ophthalmology at the University of Southern
California in Los Angeles. 'The most frequent way people contaminate a bottle of drops is by touching the lashes with the dropper tip. The bacteria can get into the bottle, although the preservative will reduce the risk of getting an infection.'
There are ordinarily two types of liquids that will assist in treating dry, irritated eyes. These treatments will help lubricate the eye surfaces and eliminate redness. The first type of drops is the artificial tears. This type is used when the tear ducts in your eyes are not producing enough liquid or mucus to keep your eyes healthy. The artificial tears will lubricate the eye surface until the direct reason for the lack of tears can be addressed by a physician. Artificial tears will also help when the cause of the eye irritation is due to smog or a chemical reaction to chlorine after swimming.
The second type of eye drops is more for flushing the eye surface to rid the eye of a foreign object. These over the counter remedies will be adequate for most cases of eye irritation, but if the condition persists for more than a couple of days, you should seek medical assistance to determine the reason your eyes are so irritated and uncomfortable.
Patients that are taking certain types of medications may suffer from periodic dry eyes and can use over the counter eye drops to relieve the irritation. The eye doctor sometimes provides a mild solution that will help the eye surfaces stay lubricated, especially when the medication that is causing the dryness cannot be changed or is being taken for a short term.
Long exposure to the sun can cause eye irritation and dryness in the eyes. In this instance, wearing sun glasses and using the eye drops can assist in keeping the eyes from becoming painful and swollen from over exposure. Wind, sand, petrol fumes, smog, and other types of air pollution are most often to blame for the dry eye irritation and scratchiness that a person would feel with irritated eyes. Eye flushing drops will solve the majority of the discomfort temporarily. Cool cloths across the eyes can help with the burning sensation that is the result of irritated eyes.
Taking precautions to protect your eyes from foreign objects to include dust and pet hair is imperative to keeping your eyes healthy. The eyes are your window to the world. Take good care of them.
