Dry Eye Treatment in Denver, CO
What is Dry Eye?
Dry eye syndrome is a condition that affects millions of people around the world, especially in dryer environments like Colorado. Dr. Pennington has specialized in dry eye disease and has many state of the art options for treatment. Dry eye is more common in women and can worsen with age. Dry eye can range from a mild condition to a debilitating vision-threatening condition.
Dry eye can also be associated with autoimmune conditions like rheumatoid arthritis and Sjogren’s syndrome. Computer use can worsen symptoms because we all blink much less when we are concentrating on the computer or reading. Other causes of dry eye include contact lenses, allergies, heating, air-conditioning, air pollution, cigarette smoking, Bell’s palsy, infections like ocular shingles and medications.
What are the symptoms of Dry Eye?
Foreign body sensation
Stinging and burning
Light sensitivity
Glare
Blurred vision
Tearing
What are the treatments for Dry Eye?
There are a variety of treatment options and many new therapies we can use. We can use eye drops, oral medications or even in-office procedures depending on your situation.
In some cases of dry eye, your tear duct system (lacrimal system) might make too many tears to relieve the irritation, called reflex tearing or lacrimation, leading to overflowing tears, called epiphora.
If your lacrimal system is involved, you may need a device that unclogs blocked glands on your eyelids in office. You may need temporary punctal plugs to block the punctum, which is the opening of the tear drainage system.
Or the cause of your dry eyes may be nasolacrimal duct obstruction (NLDO), canalicular stenosis or unctal stenosis. The cause could be an infection in the drainage system like canaliculitis or dacryocystitis.
Each condition warrants its own distinct treatment, and Dr. Pennington will help decide what will best address each individual patient’s needs.
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