Inflammation and red eyes

[Lauren 007]

I have had inflamed, red tear ducts and on again, off again red eye veins for a few weeks. My eyes are not dry, but the veins are uncomfortable and look pretty bad. I'm able to wear contacts, thankfully.

I've heard that antibiotics should clear this up, but until I find any relief with antibiotics, I was wondering if there were any eye drops or something of that sort that would relieve the redness and inflammation? Thank you.

[Melissa W]

Hi Lauren,

Have you tried Restasis? It's a prescription drop that takes a month to 6 weeks to take effect and it has helped people with ocular rosacea and dry eyes. In the meantime while you are waiting for the effects to kick in you should be moisturizing yor eyes with preservative-free rewetting drops frequently. It really will help.

Best wishes,
Melissa

PS Do you have any other ocular symptoms such as bleph or chalazions etc? Also, I recommend a daily disposable contact lens vs. the conventional type or the 2 week disposable because that way you are getting a clean lens every day.

[Lauren 007]

No, I don't think I have any other eye symptoms other than the inflammation. It's weird because my eyes don't feel dry, but they look dry. I'll look into Restasis, thank you!

[Melissa W]

Lauren,
If the mino helps you it will also help relieve some of the inflammation in your eyes so that will be an added benefit to look forward to.

Melissa

[bentherebefore]

Best dry eye website in the universe:

http://dryeyezone.com/

It covers not only classic dry eye, but ocular rosacea, meibomian gland dysfunction, everything!!! I know it's another overwhelming forum, but read some of the basics there.

[Lauren 007]

Best dry eye website in the universe:

http://dryeyezone.com/

It covers not only classic dry eye, but ocular rosacea, meibomian gland dysfunction, everything!!! I know it's another overwhelming forum, but read some of the basics there.

Thanks, bentherebefore!

[Melissa W]

Good find Ben!
Thanks for the link.
No such thing as too much info grin:

[Lauren 007]

I've read that these drugstore eye drops: http://www.drugstore.com/products/prod.asp?pid=12297&catid=47341&trx=29904&tab=1#1 have been good in reducing occular Rosacea symptoms involving the eye itself. Has anyone tried them? They're preservative-free; are there any other ingredients I should check for? Thanks.

[Melissa W]

Those are good Lauren!

[Brighteyes]

Hey Lauren,

Those OTC drops are fine - just make sure they are preservative-free single use vials - you don't want anything containing BAK (benzalkonium chloride). Also, try not to use vasoconstricors, such as visine, more than once a month. You should be doing hot compresses 2x/day for 10-15 minutes followed by lid massage and cleansing. Restasis would probably be good too. What antibiotic are you on? Hopefully you can keep your ocular rosacea at bay for a while with this routine. From your symptoms its pretty ovbious you are developing dry eyes even if they don't feel dry (do they feel wet or watery sometimes?). Check out dryeyezone.com for more info.

[Lauren 007]

Hey Lauren,

Those OTC drops are fine - just make sure they are preservative-free single use vials - you don't want anything containing BAK (benzalkonium chloride). Also, try not to use vasoconstricors, such as visine, more than once a month. You should be doing hot compresses 2x/day for 10-15 minutes followed by lid massage and cleansing. Restasis would probably be good too. What antibiotic are you on? Hopefully you can keep your ocular rosacea at bay for a while with this routine. From your symptoms its pretty ovbious you are developing dry eyes even if they don't feel dry (do they feel wet or watery sometimes?). Check out dryeyezone.com for more info.

The antibiotic I'm on is Minocycline. I was wondering how cleansing the eyelids would help the eyes? Thanks for your post.

[bentherebefore]

Cleansing the eyelids is done for several reasons. The biggest one is to clean and help clear the meibomian glands, which produce the oil that helps keep the water of your tears from evaporating. This oil is extremely important. It will also help your eye produce for of the watery part of your tears, and it should also clean away any debris or dirt that might be irritating the eye.

[Lauren 007]

Thanks, bentherebefore!