The Dry Eye

Dry eye disease is a chronic condition where the eyes don't produce enough tears, or the tears aren't the right quality to keep the eye's surface comfortable and healthy, leading to symptoms like grittiness, burning, redness and blurry vision that comes and goes.

Evaporative dry eye — the most common type, usually from meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD) — happens when the oily layer of the tear film breaks down and tears evaporate too fast, while aqueous-deficient dry eye happens when the glands simply don't produce enough of the watery part of tears; many people have a mix of both.

Dry eye can come from reduced blinking during long screen use, aging, hormonal changes like menopause, certain medications (antihistamines, antidepressants and others), autoimmune conditions like Sjögren's syndrome, and eyelid conditions like blepharitis — often more than one cause is involved.

An eye doctor diagnoses dry eye with a comprehensive exam that can include tear breakup time testing, tear film osmolarity testing and meibography to look at the oil-producing glands, rather than relying on symptoms alone, since the specific type found changes which treatment works best.

Treatment ranges from artificial tears and warm compresses at home, to prescription anti-inflammatory drops, punctal plugs that help tears stay on the eye longer, and in-office procedures like thermal pulsation or IPL for glands that aren't working well — some devices are FDA-cleared for dry eye or MGD specifically, so ask your provider what's cleared for your situation.

No — blepharitis is inflammation of the eyelid margins that causes crusty, red or itchy eyelids, but it very often occurs alongside dry eye and the two are frequently treated together.

Sudden vision loss, sudden severe eye pain, or an eye injury are not routine dry eye symptoms — those need urgent care right away or a call to 911, rather than waiting for a scheduled eye appointment.