1. Community
  2. Eyes
  3. Cataract

Have you experienced waking up with dry eye symptoms? Are eye drops a cure?

Posted , 7 users are following.

RonAKA
RonAKA

I ask this as I have an issue of blurry vision in one eye when I wake up since my catarct surgery in this eye. It has been 1 year now, and it does not seem to be going away. It is not super serious, as it seems to only last 10 minutes or so after waking up. I notice it because I use a CPAP and always check it first thing when I wake up to see what my AHI score was for the night. I also notice it when I look at my digital clock if I wake up in the night. This is my close eye in a mini-monovision configuration and the clock and CPAP should be at the ideal distance for clear vision. In fact in the night when I wake up, I see the clock more clearly with my distance eye, which is not optimized for this distance.

.

This same eye is the one that a Lasik surgeon has said I have keratoconus in (irregular astigmatism caused by a thin cornea). Not sure if it is related or not.

.

I am thinking it may be the result of one of a couple of the more probable causes. One is just night time dry eye disease, and possibly addressed by night time dry eye drops. The other is that I am opening that eye at night while sleeping (nocturnal lagophthalmos). Not sure how one would diagnose the latter, so currently I am pursuing dry eye drops for night time use. Not sure there is a practical solution to the opening the eye thing...

.

Do you have any experience with this issue, and have you been able to resolve it? For what it is worth I have found what looks like a very good article on the various eye drops sold for dry eye disease. It is written by a Canadian optometrist and seem fairly well researched. You should be able to find it by googling this phrase:

.

Dr. Mike NG COMPARING PRESERVATIVE-FREE EYE DROP PRODUCTS IN CANADA & LOOKING BEYOND March 4, 2020

.

Based on this article and a few others, I am going to try using HydraSense Advanced for Dry Eyes drops for the daytime (0.15% HA), and HydraSense Gel Ultra Night time drops (0.3% HA) at bedtime to see if that helps. I am not totally optimistic it is going to work, but I think it may be worth a try. Interestingly I have not had this issue with my other eye which had cataract surgery about 2.5 years ago now...

0 likes, 24 replies

24 Replies

Next
  • Lynda111
    Lynda111 RonAKA

    Posted

    Google C-PAP and dry eyes

    There is a connection.

    • RonAKA
      RonAKA Lynda111

      Edited

      Thank you for the reply,

      Yes, I can believe in some circumstances that there could be a connection. I have been using CPAP for 5 years now, and when I first started using it, I tried to use a full face mask. It leaked at the seal against my cheeks and blew air into my eyes. It was very annoying and did dry my eyes out. It also made it hard to sleep. I could not get it to stop leaking so I switched to a nasal pillow mask which does not leak. No issues after that. This current issue seems to have started since my cataract surgery a year ago. Not sure why after a year it could be connected to my surgery, but guess in some cases people suffer from dry eye after cataract surgery. And, I do not have it in the other eye which has also had cataract surgery. It is puzzling. It could also just be an age thing. Time marches on...

  • Binki
    Binki RonAKA

    Edited

    interesting question, as I too have dry eye issues since my recent second cataract op (the eye also had/has astigmatism). But not in the first cataract-op eye ( done 16 months ago).

    I'm trying varifocal specs with prism lens to address resultant double vision, so my dry, and slightly sore, eye may be reacting to that. I'm trying Optrex lubricant eye drops at the moment, which seem to help, but it's a nuisance! Incidentally, I can see the clock on my radio in the night too better using the eye I couldn't see it with before! Mysterious!

    • RonAKA
      RonAKA Binki

      Edited

      Last night was my first try with the HydraSense Gel Ultra Night drops at bedtime. Vision was actually a bit better this morning, but it is probably to early to tell if it will help significantly or not. You are right, my issue with drops is the annoyance of using them.

  • karbonbee
    karbonbee RonAKA

    Edited

    Have you also tested the humidity in your home? It also makes a big difference. It should be between 40 RH and 60 RH with around 50 RH (relative humidity) for ideal moisture content in your home. I live in an old house that is not very air tight and unless I run humidifiers regularly, the RH is below 20 RH in the cold season, and I wake up with nose bleeds and really itchy dry eyes on a daily basis. I've been using HydraSense ULtra for the past month and just started using the Ultra Night drops like you are using overnight, but by themselves, they wouldn't be enough. I got a cheap little humidistat by Honeywell off Amazon for under $20, and it works really well. I have read of many people experiencing enhanced dry eye symptoms after cataract surgery, but it usually goes away within the first year.

    • RonAKA
      RonAKA karbonbee

      Edited

      That is a potential contributor to the issue. We live in a dryer area of Canada. I see humidity in the house is 26% today, but I can't say I watch it on an ongoing basis. We used to have a motorized humidifier on the furnace but it was a major pain to keep working, so I dumped it when I installed our new furnace. I don't think it can be the whole problem as I really do not have this overnight issue with my right eye, only my left. It is puzzling.

    • karbonbee
      karbonbee RonAKA

      Posted

      Have you looked up "meibomian gland dysfunction"? "(MGD) is a common eye condition that affects the tiny glands in your eyelids that produce the oil layer of your tears."

      .

      I found out that I have a blocked gland in the upper lid of my left eye. That is what is causing what feels like a dry spot at times under the lid of that eye. I noticed a little cyst like bump on the eyelid over a month ago, and couldn't figure out what it was. It didn't hurt, but it wasn't going away on it's own either. I stumbled over the blocked eye gland problem as it relates to dry eyes while looking other stuff up, and realized that is what the little cyst I have is. I got a moist heat mask that I use for ten minutes twice a day, and it seems to be helping. Unfortunately the cyst isn't dissolving on it's own as happened to others, but it does seem that the oil glands in my eyes are moving more freely as a whole. Sometimes you can't see the cyst on top of the eyelid like I do, sometimes it's under the eyelid.

      .

      There are videos that show you how to gently massage your eyelids (top and bottom) that also helps to unblock the oil glands (after you do the moist heat mask), Some people have had luck completely expressing the blocked glands doing the heat mask and massage, but usually you are only successful doing it yourself if it's less than a month old, which is probably why mine isn't dissolving as it's been longer -- wish I'd known about this earlier. There's a good video by Shannon Wong in particular, where he explains the massaging technique, but also shows how an ophthalmologist can unblock it for you if the heat and massage doesn't work. If this sounds like what might be happening to your left eye, you could make an appointment with your eye doctor and have it looked at.

    • RonAKA
      RonAKA karbonbee

      Edited

      I have not heard of that condition, but it would be a possibility. Nothing jumped out at me when I looked up the condition and possible causes. I would have high cholesterol, but it is very well controlled with Crestor. I do take long chain Omega-3 supplements. And I have not noticed any indication of irritation or swelling on the eyelids.

      .

      I have an annual appointment with my optometrist coming up in abut a month, so I will ask about it. With my many visits to surgeons and optometrists over the past couple of years I have had a few of the tests they do for dry eye but with nothing definitive diagnosed.

      .

      My only real issue is in the morning and only with this one eye.

    • Lynda111
      Lynda111 RonAKA

      Edited

      Lid hygiene can help with dry eyes as I have read, either with a warm wash cloth or with lid scrubs

    • karbonbee
      karbonbee Lynda111

      Posted

      Yes, I've been reading that also. I was surprised. Thought at first it was more of a gimmick to sell stuff, but as I read more, it started to make sense.

    • RonAKA
      RonAKA karbonbee

      Edited

      I am a few days into using HydraSense Advanced (0.15% HA) in the morning and HydraSense Gel Ultra Night (0.3% HA) at bedtime. I am seems kind of mixed results. Sometimes I wake up in the night and my left eye is perfectly clear. I have also had a couple of mornings when it is clear too, but then I blink a few times an I get the hazy film vision comes back. It is almost like it is something building up in the eye during sleep. I never notice any kind of discharge from the eye, but there does seem to be something in there.

      .

      I read one report of a comparison between HA(0.1%) and CMC(0.5%) drops. They talk about improvements seen at 35 days, and continued improvement up to 84 days. So, perhaps I am being way too optimistic to expect improvements overnight or in 3-4 days. I will continue on until these current drops are used up, and by then I should know if they are working for me or not.

      .

      Healio July 18, 2018 Two dry eye drop formulations compared Preeya K. Gupta, MD

    • karbonbee
      karbonbee RonAKA

      Posted

      I like the HydraSense, but I'm more impressed by Refresh. I got their overnight gel drops (Refresh Celluvisc) which are a thicker gel, and put them in the left eye which I'm having more problems with, and the HydraSense Gel Ultra Night in the right eye, and the left eye was perfect the next morning while the right eye was just okay. I didn't have any haze or dryness at all in the left eye which has the blocked tear duct. However, you really should ask your eye doctor about potentially having blocked ducts in that eye. You don't always have something physical on or in the eye that is noticeable, as in my case, for it to be a problem. I've read quite a lot of it developing after cataract surgery, and it doesn't have to be in both eyes.

      .

      Ingredients ror Refresh Celluvisc are... "Active Ingredients: Carboxymethylcellulose Sodium (1 %), Eye Lubricant. Inactive Ingredients: Calcium Chloride, Potassium Chloride, Purified Water, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Lactate."

    • RonAKA
      RonAKA karbonbee

      Edited

      That is good information. I will have to look into drops that have this ingredient.

  • Lynda111
    Lynda111 RonAKA

    Edited

    I like Systane Hydration. It's made by Alcon. Lubricating drops. Preservative free in multidose bottle

    • RonAKA
      RonAKA Lynda111

      Posted

      I have not tried these. I will have to keep them on the list. I believe Costco stocks them.

Back to top
Next

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.