DRY AND WATERY EYE TREATMENT

     The eye is kept healthy by three layers of moisturizers (tears) and about twenty proteins and salts. The layers are mucin to make the tears stick to the eye, a thick water layer and an oil layer to inhibit evaporation.

     Without the proper mucin layer, the tears will run down the cheek, leaving the eye exposed. There may actually seem to be too much water in the eye. Dr. Knutson uses a couple different dyes under a high-powered microscope to see if this cell-killing exposure is occurring. There are also other tests to quantify the volume and quality of the tear layer.

     The tear layer is secreted by thousands of cells and glands. This is not easily replaced by drops. More often than not, eye lubricants, done adequately, replace what is normal in youth. A more convenient and usually more effective treatment is to retain more of the tear layer in the eye by plugging the drainage system. Dr. Knutson does this with a silicone plug that looks like a tiny ear plug. It is not uncomfortable to insert and lasts for decades if it is not squeezed out by rubbing. Usually this is covered by major medical and Medicare insurance.