【Health Lecture】How much do you know about dry eye syndrome?

With the advent of the information age, people are increasingly dependent on electronic products in both work and life, and as a result, the incidence of dry eye is also increasing. In addition, factors such as meibomian gland dysfunction, bad eye makeup habits of beauty-conscious people, staying up late, staying in air-conditioned rooms for a long time, and mental stress caused by work and life pressures can induce and aggravate the occurrence and development of dry eye, and even cause vision loss and even psychological sub-health problems.

So how do we recognize whether we have dry eyes? Symptoms of dry eyes usually include the following: stinging or burning sensation in the eyes, bloodshot eyes, photophobia, foreign body sensation, easy tearing due to irritation or in the wind, thin or mucous discharge in the eyes, heavy eyelids, dryness and discomfort when wearing contact lenses, reduced tolerance for reading, computer work or anything that requires sustained attention, easy eye fatigue, stinging or dry eyes after looking for a while and needing to close the eyes to rest, etc.

How should dry eyes be treated? Many people think that dry eyes can be cured by giving the eyes a rest and buying some eye drops from the pharmacy. In fact, it is not that simple.

In general, the treatment of dry eyes includes three aspects: etiological treatment, non-drug treatment and drug treatment. Etiological treatment : Dry eyes may be a symptom of some diseases, so the primary disease needs to be treated to cure dry eyes. Non-drug treatment refers to physical therapy . For example, people with meibomian gland dysfunction need physical therapy to improve their function, including traditional physical therapy - meibomian gland cleaning, hot compresses, massage, in addition to new physical therapy methods, such as meibomian gland intense pulsed light therapy. Drug treatment : including artificial tears, local anti-inflammatory drug treatment, etc. Among them, artificial tears are the first-line treatment, which can increase the humidity of the ocular surface and have a lubricating effect, eliminate eye discomfort, and improve the symptoms of dry eyes. It is currently the most important method for treating dry eyes. There are many types of artificial tears, each of which has its own characteristics, and it should be selected according to the type of dry eyes.

In addition, a healthy diet, developing good eye and lifestyle habits, avoiding prolonged use of electronic products, staying up late, and using poor eye makeup can all help improve and relieve the symptoms of dry eyes and meibomian gland dysfunction.

In daily life, people often have many misunderstandings and misconceptions about dry eyes.

Myth 1: Dry eyes are not a disease. It doesn’t matter whether you see a doctor or not. It will get better after a while. In fact, if dry eyes are allowed to develop, the cornea will lack nutrition and cleaning, causing the ocular surface microenvironment to be damaged and unbalanced, leading to ocular surface inflammation and even vision loss. Some dry eyes are manifestations of systemic diseases. If you don’t seek medical treatment in time, serious consequences may occur. Key points for prevention and treatment: Recognize that dry eyes are a chronic disease. Just like high blood pressure and diabetes, they need to be taken seriously. Failure to treat them can lead to serious consequences. Dry eyes require long-term treatment, and severe cases require lifelong treatment. It also requires the joint efforts of doctors and patients to play an effective positive role.

Misconception 2: Abuse of eye drops. Go to the pharmacy and buy whatever the clerk recommends. After buying it, you either use it many times a day or forget to use it completely when you are busy. Prevention and treatment tips: It is best to go to the eye department for a check-up, let the doctor choose the right eye drops, and use the medicine according to the doctor's instructions for better efficacy.

Myth 3: Dry eyes mean less tears, so eye drops are enough. There are many reasons for dry eyes, and a person may have multiple causes of dry eyes. For example, common meibomian gland dysfunction is one of the ocular surface problems that most dry eye patients have. This cannot be solved simply with eye drops, but needs to be combined with a meibomian gland treatment device for better treatment results. Prevention and treatment points: Take a comprehensive treatment approach, including lifestyle adjustments, improvement of eye habits, putting down your phone and exercising more, etc. In addition to eye drops, try a variety of treatment methods under the guidance of a doctor to achieve better results.

In short, the occurrence and development of dry eye disease are mainly related to multiple factors such as bad eye habits, staying up late, mental stress and anxiety, and work and living environment. In addition to paying attention to and avoiding these factors, we need to seek medical treatment in time and take medicine under the guidance of doctors. 1. "Chinese Meibomian Gland Function Expert Consensus: Diagnosis and Treatment (2023)" 2. "Chinese Dry Eye Expert Consensus: Definition and Classification (2020)" 3. "Chinese Dry Eye Expert Consensus: Treatment (2020)" Picture: Qianku.com Expert Profile <br /> Chief Physician Wang Chunhui graduated from the Ophthalmology Department of West China Hospital with a master's degree and has been engaged in clinical work for 10 years. He has received 3 years of standardized training in the Ophthalmology Department of Friendship Hospital Affiliated to Capital Medical University. He has rich clinical experience in the prevention and control of myopia in adolescents and children, diagnosis and treatment of cataracts, corneal diseases, glaucoma, fundus diseases including macular diseases, retinal vascular diseases, diabetic retinopathy, optic neuropathy, etc., phacoemulsification and aspiration of cataracts + intraocular lens implantation, iris YAG laser drilling with anterior segment laser, posterior capsulotomy for posterior cataracts, and laser treatment of fundus diseases. He has published many academic articles and participated in the editing of one monograph.