What is the difference between eye drops and artificial tears? How should I choose when my baby wears OK glasses?

For children who use OK glasses, it is essential to use eye drops (lubricating fluid) before putting on and taking off the glasses. Some parents have heard from other parents and even doctors that artificial tear products can be used to replace eye drops. So, what is the difference between the two? Can they replace each other? What key indicators should be paid attention to when choosing? In this article, Dr. Jingcai will take you to understand. As usual, it is pure popular science, no deception, no selling, please feel free to read.

Difference 1: Different main audiences and purposes.

Eye drops (lubricating liquid) are provided for users of OK lenses or other hard corneal contact lenses to facilitate the operation of wearing and removing lenses and reduce irritation to the eyes, especially the cornea, during the operation;

Artificial tears are used to treat and relieve dry eyes for patients with dry eyes or people with dry eye symptoms.

Difference 2: The registration and approval channels are different.

The vast majority of eye drops go through the medical device registration and approval channel. If you look closely at the packaging of such products, you will see an approval number "Guo Xie Zhu Jin xxxx" or "Guo Xie Zhu Zhun xxxx" on it; the former is an imported product, and the latter is a domestic product.

Artificial tears, on the other hand, go through the drug registration and approval process, with the product guarantee bearing the approval number of "National Medicine Import No. xxxx" or "National Medicine Approval No. xxxx"; similarly, the former is imported and the latter is domestically produced.

Difference three: different purchasing channels.

Eye drops can be purchased at pharmacies and e-commerce platforms;

Artificial tears require specific consideration. Some products are "over-the-counter drugs" and have a striking oval OTC logo on the product packaging, as shown below. The red logo is for OTC Class A drugs, and the green logo is for Class B. Relatively speaking, OTC Class B drugs have a higher safety factor and fewer side effects. Over-the-counter artificial tears products, like eye drops, can also be purchased in pharmacies and e-commerce platforms;

Some artificial tear products are "prescription drugs" and cannot be bought or used casually. They require consultation in a hospital and a doctor's prescription.

Difference 4: Different ingredients

The main ingredients of eye drops usually include buffers, osmotic pressure regulators, lubricants, thickeners, chelating agents, etc. The ingredients of different products are different and very diverse.

Artificial tear products mainly include the following categories according to their main ingredients:

- Hyaluronic acid;

- Hydrogels;

-Lipid-based artificial tears; closer to the composition of human tears, but usually contain preservatives.

So, are there any similarities between these two types of products?

have.

Similarity 1: Both have the function of moistening and lubricating the ocular surface.

Whether it is eye drops or artificial tears, they can moisten and lubricate the eye surface after use, making the eyes feel comfortable;

Similarity 2: Both are relatively safe eye products.

Compared with many other eye medications, eye drops and artificial tears are safer and the risks of self-use are not high.

So, can these two types of products be interchanged without a second thought?

1. The main goal is to treat and relieve dry eye symptoms, and eye drops cannot be used as a substitute.

2. Children who wear OK lenses can use artificial tears instead of eye drops, especially artificial tears that do not contain preservatives and have a higher viscosity. They are very suitable and even better for children.

What indicators should you focus on when choosing eye drops or artificial tears?

1. Whether it contains preservatives. The most commonly used preservatives in ophthalmic drugs are quaternary ammonium substances, including BAK (benzalkonium chloride, also known as benzalkonium chloride, BAC), etc. If you see words such as BAK, BAC, benzalkonium chloride, quaternary ammonium, etc. on the product packaging or instructions, then this product contains preservatives.

2. Long-term use of eye drops containing preservatives may cause problems including allergies, dry eyes, subconjunctival fibrosis, etc.; therefore, you should try to choose products that do not contain preservatives.

3. Check the viscosity of the product. For OK lens users, especially when removing the lenses, products with higher viscosity are more conducive to removing the lenses. Therefore, you can choose products with relatively high viscosity. Some products include several different concentrations. For example, a certain dew has different concentrations of 0.1%, 0.2% and 0.3 for sodium hyaluronate. If the 0.1% concentration is not ideal when removing the lenses, you can try a higher concentration.

Well, that’s all about the introduction of OK lens eye drops and artificial tears. I hope this article is helpful to you, and you are also welcome to forward it to other parents, who may also need it.

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Ref: Christophe Baudouin. Acta Ophthalmologica.2008;86:716-26.

About Dr. Jingcai: The creators of Dr. Jingcai's popular science content all have a professional background in ophthalmology, a master's degree or above, and are former ophthalmologists. For some popular science content with a higher degree of professionalism, we will also invite working ophthalmologists and optometry experts to review and check it, striving to be responsible for the accuracy of the content and avoid misleading readers.