Dry eyes after cataract surgery - how long does it last and what remedies have worked for you?
Posted , 7 users are following.
I had cataracts removed from both eyes recently - the right eye was done on June 23 and the second eye on June 30, so I am a little over a month out from the first surgery and a little over three weeks from the second surgery. I had the Alcon IQ Toric lenses implanted in both eyes, set for distance.
My recovery has gone smoothly except for two issues, that I now believe are related to each other and that are causing me a lot of distress. The first is periodic headaches and the second is a rather persistent case of dry eyes. The dry eye symptoms developed several days after the second surgery and consist of scratchiness, a very uncomfortable achy/sore feeling in the eyes, and kind of a sense that the eyeballs are too big for the eye sockets (a description someone else gave me, which I find very apt). It's like I'm wearing contacts that are driving me crazy and I can't wait to take them out, until I realize, "oh wait, I don't have contacts and I can't take out my actual eyes!"
The headaches center around my forehead and under my eyes (sinus area) and I think they are to some extent a result of the dry eyes causing me to develop a lot of muscle tension in those areas. I have had migraine headaches in the past but these are different ... they feel much more like eyestrain or tension headaches. I've never had dry eyes before so that is new for me ... and very unwelcome.
I am treating the dry eyes with otc artificial tears (preservative free, single use kind) and have tried Systane, Soothe, and Refresh so far. I put the drops in usually about four times a day. I also started taking flaxseed oil capsules twice a day - I'm a vegetarian so can't take fish oil. For the headaches, I am meditating every morning (helps me learn to relax my facial muscles) and taking my Rx migraine meds (sumatriptan) along with otc migraine pills as needed.
***I know that dry eyes are a common side effect of cataract surgery but I would be interested to know what other people's experience with this has been. If you too had this problem, were your symptoms similar to mine or different? Did you also have headaches along with the dry eyes? How long did it take for the symptoms to resolve after the surgery and what remedies or treatments did you find most helpful? ***
BTW, I will see my surgeon in about a week and a half for my final post surgery follow up so will of course talk to him then about what he may recommend. His office did tell me about a week ago to increase my use of the artificial tears, which I have done. Thanks for any help or guidance others can provide!
0 likes, 13 replies
RonAKA dsb57916
Edited
I have one AcrySof IQ Aspheric lens and a contact lens in the other eye. The contact lens eye tends to bug me a bit more than the IOL eye. I may use drops once a day in one eye or the other or both. I find I get relief using HydraSense Advanced for Dry Eyes.
dsb57916 RonAKA
Posted
Thank you, Ron. I will keep that brand in mind!
RonAKA dsb57916
Edited
My wife is the main eye drops user in our house. She uses them a few times a day. I may or may not use them once a day. She has not had cataract surgery yet. I have not really heard a good explanation as why one would have dry eyes as a result of cataract surgery. The best explanation I have heard is that it is coincidental. Older people tend to have cataracts, and dry eyes are more predominant in older people.
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On drops I think the main effective ingredient is Sodium Hyaluronate, so that is what I look for. I don't think Systane has any in it. My wife likes HYLO drops which have 0.1% of it. I like the HydraSense Advanced which has 50% more at 0.15%. I find it works well for me, and have felt no need to use the much more expensive HYLO. As said before, I find it works in both my IOL eye as well as the eye with a contact in it.
Sue.An2 RonAKA
Posted
Thought I read somewhere that if you need to use artificial tears more than 4 times a day you should use the preservative free. I may be wrong. I should look into it more as some brands may cause more harm than good.
Even professionals don't have all the answers. My dermatologist recommended the Neutrogena sunscreen and now there is a big recall on that product.
RonAKA Sue.An2
Edited
The HYLO and HydraSense Advanced are both preservative free. The Systane Complete eye drops that we have do say they contain POLYQUAD 0.001% preservative.
Sue.An2 RonAKA
Posted
the Systane preservative free come in individual vials - one time use
Sue.An2 dsb57916
Edited
For dry eye I used Systane drops - they also come in preservative free. Used these for well over a year and still use time to time.
dsb57916 Sue.An2
Edited
Yes, I have tried the Systane drops, along with several other brands. When you say you used them for well over a year, does that mean that your post cataract dry eye symptoms lasted that long? Did they eventually go away for the most part?
Sue.An2 dsb57916
Posted
Yes dry eye can last well beyond surgery. I find i have go blink more IOLs or use artificial tears - will use them occasionally now. That may be particular to me or all cataract patients. Not sure. Would be interesting to find out
Sue.An2 dsb57916
Posted
I should also mention that I take flaxseed oil capsuke - 1 a day. Seems to help. could also use Omega 3 capsule
tsp1 dsb57916
Edited
I had cataract surgery done on one eye 4 months ago. I never had dry eye issues before. I had the PanOptix lens and not having good results. But for your issue, they have been treating me for dry eye since I have the same issues you are having except no headaches. Doctor now has me on blood serum eye drops made from my own blood because after 4 months of using every brand of eye drops, including Xiidra, no help. I am putting drops in my eyes 11x a day. I have no time to do anything else. With the glare and night time vision issues with this lens, I am thinking of having it replaced with a regular mono lens which means I just threw away $2200.
bob38868 dsb57916
Edited
This is my last post on this site.
I provided completely innocuous information that would be beneficial to anyone who would follow it. The post was deleted by someone who apparently is not interested in natural medicine. It is sad the cancel culture we find ourselves in. What happened to free expression and promotion of good will and health to all?
Sue.An2 bob38868
Posted
If there was a link included it would be deleted for that reason.