Dry eyes and artificial tears

About a year ago I had a problem with dry eyes and the doctor
prescribed some antibiotic and artificial tears (Tears Naturale
II.) I don't think they helped that much, but the problem went
away after a while. I think it is most probably an allergy and
has to do with the environment.

Lately I've been getting the dry eyes again and I bought the
same artificial tears thinking they might help. I took them for
a day and they actually made the symptoms worse, but the
following day I felt a lot better. Then I took them again and
the made the symptoms worse once again. Is it possible that
artificial tears are helping long-term (the next day)? I thought
they were only useful for short time periods (an hour or less.)

Tears Naturale II use Polyquad as a preservative. It may be that you
have an allergic reaction to this preservative or other ingredients in
this particular artificial tear.

As a general rule, the preservative-free artificial tears are best.
You may want to consider switching.

We have a detailed article about artificial tears at:
http://www.usaeyes.org/lasik/faq/las...icial-tear.htm

Glenn Hagele
Executive Director
USAEyes (TM)
Patient Advocacy Surgeon Certification

"Consider and Choose With Confidence" (TM)

Email to glenn dot hagele at usaeyes dot org

http://www.USAEyes.org

Lasik Bulletin Board
http://www.USAEyes.org/Ask-Lasik-Expert/

I am not a doctor.

Copyright 2007
All Rights Reserved

On Thu, 11 Oct 2007 12:06:00 -0700, Glenn - USAEyes.org
<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>Tears Naturale II use Polyquad as a preservative. It may be that you
>have an allergic reaction to this preservative or other ingredients in
>this particular artificial tear.
>
>As a general rule, the preservative-free artificial tears are best.
>You may want to consider switching.

Agreed ... and I say this with QUITE A BIT of emphasis. (I also think
that the P-quads are derivatives of Benzalkonium Chloride ...
basically, Drano for the eye).

Preservatives, for artificial tears/eye lubricants, are like
cigarettes: there is no safe one. I could give you hundreds of lines
of support, clinical trials, and reasoning for this, but ... trust me:
it exists ... in overwhelming quantities.

I would suggest that you use ONLY preservative-free tears. Which one
is best is really subject to a lot of different variables that are
specific to YOUR dry eye case.

Experimenting is reasonable.

Also, you may want to stop by:

www.dryeyezone.com

They have a BIG FAQ section, AND an online forum (tell them Neil sent
you!). If you introduce yourself and your particular situation,
people will ask questions about your case, and then help you narrow
down which drops to try.

Best of luck. Dry eye is a much larger problem than many people ever
imagine.

Neil

Neil Brooks wrote:

> On Thu, 11 Oct 2007 12:06:00 -0700, Glenn - USAEyes.org
> <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>
> > Tears Naturale II use Polyquad as a preservative. It may be that you
> > have an allergic reaction to this preservative or other ingredients
> > in this particular artificial tear.
> >
> > As a general rule, the preservative-free artificial tears are best.
> > You may want to consider switching.
>
> Agreed ... and I say this with QUITE A BIT of emphasis. (I also think
> that the P-quads are derivatives of Benzalkonium Chloride ...
> basically, Drano for the eye).
>
> Preservatives, for artificial tears/eye lubricants, are like
> cigarettes: there is no safe one. I could give you hundreds of lines
> of support, clinical trials, and reasoning for this, but ... trust me:
> it exists ... in overwhelming quantities.
>
> I would suggest that you use ONLY preservative-free tears. Which one
> is best is really subject to a lot of different variables that are
> specific to YOUR dry eye case.
>
> Experimenting is reasonable.
>
> Also, you may want to stop by:
>
> www.dryeyezone.com
>
> They have a BIG FAQ section, AND an online forum (tell them Neil sent
> you!). If you introduce yourself and your particular situation,
> people will ask questions about your case, and then help you narrow
> down which drops to try.
>
> Best of luck. Dry eye is a much larger problem than many people ever
> imagine.
>
> Neil

How does this advice relate to contact solutions? It seems that just
dealing with contacts is equivalent to at least two doses of eye drops
per day. I don't really see any preservative free alternative though.

--

On Sat, 13 Oct 2007 15:16:33 GMT, "Charles" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>Neil Brooks wrote:
>
>> On Thu, 11 Oct 2007 12:06:00 -0700, Glenn - USAEyes.org
>> <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>>
>> > Tears Naturale II use Polyquad as a preservative. It may be that you
>> > have an allergic reaction to this preservative or other ingredients
>> > in this particular artificial tear.
>> >
>> > As a general rule, the preservative-free artificial tears are best.
>> > You may want to consider switching.
>>
>> Agreed ... and I say this with QUITE A BIT of emphasis. (I also think
>> that the P-quads are derivatives of Benzalkonium Chloride ...
>> basically, Drano for the eye).
>>
>> Preservatives, for artificial tears/eye lubricants, are like
>> cigarettes: there is no safe one. I could give you hundreds of lines
>> of support, clinical trials, and reasoning for this, but ... trust me:
>> it exists ... in overwhelming quantities.
>>
>> I would suggest that you use ONLY preservative-free tears. Which one
>> is best is really subject to a lot of different variables that are
>> specific to YOUR dry eye case.
>>
>> Experimenting is reasonable.
>>
>> Also, you may want to stop by:
>>
>> www.dryeyezone.com
>>
>> They have a BIG FAQ section, AND an online forum (tell them Neil sent
>> you!). If you introduce yourself and your particular situation,
>> people will ask questions about your case, and then help you narrow
>> down which drops to try.
>>
>> Best of luck. Dry eye is a much larger problem than many people ever
>> imagine.
>>
>> Neil
>
>How does this advice relate to contact solutions? It seems that just
>dealing with contacts is equivalent to at least two doses of eye drops
>per day. I don't really see any preservative free alternative though.


Good question, Charles.

In my estimation ... based on looking at lots of information about
preserved saline solutions ... I would avoid them, too. Same reasons.

When I was wearing soft contact lenses, I used either the AOSept
system (with preservative-free saline solution (available at many
pharmacies)) or the PuriLens lens cleaner/disinfection unit ... again,
with PF saline (the PuriLens people also sell the PF saline).

But ... it should be said ... I've got seriously dry eyes. If you
don't exhibit ANY symptoms of dry eyes, then this might be a
relatively extreme path for you to take.

That said, all o these preservatives DO show a tendency to destabilize
the tear film AND hasten cellular dealth in the outer layers of the
cornea. It's a risk:reward calculation for each person.

What I found was that avoiding the preservatives entirely (AOSept
and/or PuriLens) was really no big deal ... and did seem to prevent
further worsening of my ocular surface issues.

Neil

Neil Brooks wrote:

> On Sat, 13 Oct 2007 15:16:33 GMT, "Charles" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>
> > Neil Brooks wrote:
> >
> >> On Thu, 11 Oct 2007 12:06:00 -0700, Glenn - USAEyes.org
> >> <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
> >>
> >> > Tears Naturale II use Polyquad as a preservative. It may be that
> you >> > have an allergic reaction to this preservative or other
> ingredients >> > in this particular artificial tear.
> >> >
> >> > As a general rule, the preservative-free artificial tears are
> best. >> > You may want to consider switching.
> >>
> >> Agreed ... and I say this with QUITE A BIT of emphasis. (I also
> think >> that the P-quads are derivatives of Benzalkonium Chloride ...
> >> basically, Drano for the eye).
> >>
> >> Preservatives, for artificial tears/eye lubricants, are like
> >> cigarettes: there is no safe one. I could give you hundreds of
> lines >> of support, clinical trials, and reasoning for this, but ...
> trust me: >> it exists ... in overwhelming quantities.
> >>
> >> I would suggest that you use ONLY preservative-free tears. Which
> one >> is best is really subject to a lot of different variables that
> are >> specific to YOUR dry eye case.
> >>
> >> Experimenting is reasonable.
> >>
> >> Also, you may want to stop by:
> >>
> >> www.dryeyezone.com
> >>
> >> They have a BIG FAQ section, AND an online forum (tell them Neil
> sent >> you!). If you introduce yourself and your particular
> situation, >> people will ask questions about your case, and then
> help you narrow >> down which drops to try.
> >>
> >> Best of luck. Dry eye is a much larger problem than many people
> ever >> imagine.
> >>
> >> Neil
> >
> > How does this advice relate to contact solutions? It seems that
> > just dealing with contacts is equivalent to at least two doses of
> > eye drops per day. I don't really see any preservative free
> > alternative though.
>
>
> Good question, Charles.
>
> In my estimation ... based on looking at lots of information about
> preserved saline solutions ... I would avoid them, too. Same reasons.
>
> When I was wearing soft contact lenses, I used either the AOSept
> system (with preservative-free saline solution (available at many
> pharmacies)) or the PuriLens lens cleaner/disinfection unit ... again,
> with PF saline (the PuriLens people also sell the PF saline).
>
> But ... it should be said ... I've got seriously dry eyes. If you
> don't exhibit ANY symptoms of dry eyes, then this might be a
> relatively extreme path for you to take.
>
> That said, all o these preservatives DO show a tendency to destabilize
> the tear film AND hasten cellular dealth in the outer layers of the
> cornea. It's a risk:reward calculation for each person.
>
> What I found was that avoiding the preservatives entirely (AOSept
> and/or PuriLens) was really no big deal ... and did seem to prevent
> further worsening of my ocular surface issues.
>
> Neil

How about RGP's though? Boston is about the only game in town.

--

On Sat, 13 Oct 2007 16:20:28 GMT, "Charles" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>Neil Brooks wrote:
>
>> On Sat, 13 Oct 2007 15:16:33 GMT, "Charles" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>>
>> > Neil Brooks wrote:
>> >
>> >> On Thu, 11 Oct 2007 12:06:00 -0700, Glenn - USAEyes.org
>> >> <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>> >>
>> >> > Tears Naturale II use Polyquad as a preservative. It may be that
>> you >> > have an allergic reaction to this preservative or other
>> ingredients >> > in this particular artificial tear.
>> >> >
>> >> > As a general rule, the preservative-free artificial tears are
>> best. >> > You may want to consider switching.
>> >>
>> >> Agreed ... and I say this with QUITE A BIT of emphasis. (I also
>> think >> that the P-quads are derivatives of Benzalkonium Chloride ...
>> >> basically, Drano for the eye).
>> >>
>> >> Preservatives, for artificial tears/eye lubricants, are like
>> >> cigarettes: there is no safe one. I could give you hundreds of
>> lines >> of support, clinical trials, and reasoning for this, but ...
>> trust me: >> it exists ... in overwhelming quantities.
>> >>
>> >> I would suggest that you use ONLY preservative-free tears. Which
>> one >> is best is really subject to a lot of different variables that
>> are >> specific to YOUR dry eye case.
>> >>
>> >> Experimenting is reasonable.
>> >>
>> >> Also, you may want to stop by:
>> >>
>> >> www.dryeyezone.com
>> >>
>> >> They have a BIG FAQ section, AND an online forum (tell them Neil
>> sent >> you!). If you introduce yourself and your particular
>> situation, >> people will ask questions about your case, and then
>> help you narrow >> down which drops to try.
>> >>
>> >> Best of luck. Dry eye is a much larger problem than many people
>> ever >> imagine.
>> >>
>> >> Neil
>> >
>> > How does this advice relate to contact solutions? It seems that
>> > just dealing with contacts is equivalent to at least two doses of
>> > eye drops per day. I don't really see any preservative free
>> > alternative though.
>>
>>
>> Good question, Charles.
>>
>> In my estimation ... based on looking at lots of information about
>> preserved saline solutions ... I would avoid them, too. Same reasons.
>>
>> When I was wearing soft contact lenses, I used either the AOSept
>> system (with preservative-free saline solution (available at many
>> pharmacies)) or the PuriLens lens cleaner/disinfection unit ... again,
>> with PF saline (the PuriLens people also sell the PF saline).
>>
>> But ... it should be said ... I've got seriously dry eyes. If you
>> don't exhibit ANY symptoms of dry eyes, then this might be a
>> relatively extreme path for you to take.
>>
>> That said, all o these preservatives DO show a tendency to destabilize
>> the tear film AND hasten cellular dealth in the outer layers of the
>> cornea. It's a risk:reward calculation for each person.
>>
>> What I found was that avoiding the preservatives entirely (AOSept
>> and/or PuriLens) was really no big deal ... and did seem to prevent
>> further worsening of my ocular surface issues.
>>
>> Neil
>
>How about RGP's though? Boston is about the only game in town.

Ah, yes. I forgot. Astig only ... rgp's.

Let's see what's in their broth....

http://www.bausch.com/en_US/consumer...oncomfort.aspx

Boston Conditioning Solution:

Yup. Preserved.

Boston cleaner:

Yup. Preserved.

But there's a HUGE difference here: your RGP's do NOT act like a
sponge, so ...

1) You won't be slapping a soft lens -- hydrated WITH preserved stuff
-- onto your eyes;

2) A really cautious approach would be to simply rinse your RGPs with
PRESERVATIVE-FREE saline (even adding a drop or two into each lens)
prior to insertion;

3) IIRC, the PuriLens system works just fine for RGPs, too, though you
COULD do a little research. It MAY take a month or two off of their
ultimate useful life .... fair trade to me for ease, thorough
cleaning, and disinfection, but ....

NB: the PuriLens is something like 99.9% effective on its own. Forgive
the analogy, but it's a little like the birth control pill. It's even
SAFER with a condom in the equation.

So ... you COULD use a PuriLens (like 15 minutes), and THEN bathe it
in the Boston conditioning solution.

Just do a thorough rinse before insertion.

HTH,

Neil
Anything BUT a doctor ;-)

On Sat, 13 Oct 2007 16:50:12 GMT, Neil Brooks <(E-Mail Removed)>
wrote:

>Just do a thorough rinse before insertion.

No. I didn't mean it that way. Please move along ;-)

I wear RGP's. RGP's way more comfortable then soft lenses for me,
Boston eye drops work well during wear.
I also find sometimes excessive protien build up on them can make them
dry also. I would recommend using a protein remover once in a while.
Taking a break from wearing them helps too.
if they are still dry and uncomfortable I suggest talk to your eye
doctor. I've had to send my in for a polish once a year, clean them so
they are more comfortable.