【disease】

Dry eye disease is a common condition that occurs when your tears aren’t able to provide adequate lubrication for your eyes. Tears can be inadequate and unstable for many reasons. For example, dry eyes may occur if you don’t produce enough tears or if you produce poor-quality tears. This tear instability leads to inflammation and damage of the eye’s surface. Tears consist of 2 layers. One is oil, the other is water containing protein and other substances. In normal eyes, tears are in a stable state on the eye surface, while in dry eyes, tears are in an unstable state, and damages will appear in places which are not covered by tears. With aging、 the use of air conditioners, the popularity of computers and smartphones and the increase of contact lens wearers, the number of dry eye patients is rising. It is said that there are as many as 22 million dry eye patients in Japan.

【Causes】

The causes of dry eye include aging (aging leads to a decrease in the amount and quality of tears) 、female、lifestyle (watching the screen for a long time) 、living environment (low humidity, in an air-conditioned room), wearing contact lenses、smoking、taking medicine (oral medicine that can reduce tear secretion) 、eye drops (preservatives, etc.) 、meibomian gland diseases that reduce tear oil、 and systemic diseases (collagen diseases in which lacrimal glands are damaged due to the immune action, such as Sjogren’s syndrome and rheumatoid arthritis).

【Symptoms】

The symptoms of dry eye are not only dry eyes, but also eye fatigue, blurry vision, sensitivity to light, eye pain, eye discomfort, eye redness, teary eyes, stringy mucus in or around your eyes, and other symptoms of eye discomfort and abnormal visual function.

【Treatment】

If it is a mild symptom, it can be treated with eye drops sold in the drug stores. However, in eye clinics, eye drops to make up for insufficient components of tears or to inhibit eye inflammation will be prescribed to stabilize the tears of the eye surface.
In addition, it is also helpful to lighten the symptoms by improving the environment in daily life, such as shortening the period of watching screening, avoiding wearing contact lenses, adjusting air conditioners, and using humidifiers.

【Summary】

Dry eye is a disease that is caused by unstable tears due to various factors, which can lead to eye discomfort and abnormal visual function, accompanied by scratches on the surface of eyes.
Because of various symptoms and causes, dry eye is indistinguishable from simple temporary discomfort, it is recommended to go to eye clinics as soon as possible and get appropriate treatment.