Drops - thick or thin

[brd888]

Hello,
I'd like to ask what people prefer with their eye drops - viscous drops or thinner drops?
Ta,
Bruce

PS I was interested to read, according to www.dry-eye-instititue.org, that the healthy tear film is less than 0,01mm thick (as per a red blood cell of 6um).
i.e. if you drew a 22cm (9inch) circle on paper to represent the eyeball, the tearfilm would be less that the thickness of the finest pen stroke.

[shells]

Hi Bruce,

For me it depends on how my eyes are feeling. My usual drop of chioce is Bion Tears (thinner), but when I'm feeling extra dry sometimes I don't feel like they protect enough so I go for Dakrina or Celluvisc.

-Shells

[elaine5]

I have almost NO tears, so I use 15 boxes of Celluvisc a month. The thicker drop seems to work better for me. I do keep some thinner drops around the house and in my purse, because occasionally after putting all that Celluvisc in my eyes all day I feel like I should wash them out with something closer to the texture of water.

[liz56]

My first reaction is to say, "Thicker," but, truthfully, it depends on the need. As much as I do not like Theratears for a daily drop, it is great, because it is so watery that it seeps right in and helps me when my eyes stick after sleeping. I like the feeling of Dwelle drops, and I like Tears Naturale II as well. However, I know that Dwelle lasts far longer.

[stella]

It has to be thick for me - celluvisc ,as and when - Thick lasts longer and lubricates better i find.
Dissadavatages of thick are - It blurs the vision for a while (not as bad as ointment mind)Also it sits on the eye lashes feeling a bit uncomfortable I get round this by wetting my washed fingers and with closed eyes taking excess off the lashes This I find gentler than wiping with tissues Maybe i use too much at once - but I find I need that as I would rather do a comprehensive job that lasts than keep putting in more and more which means wiping the sore lids more
I only use thin - minims artificial tears as a wash - like the Americans use unisol.

[IanJ]

Hi,

THICK GOOP:-
I find that Systane isn't so great when appiled to my right eye, it takes a good while before blurred vision goes away, but this is because my right eye doesn't produce much tears. My left eye is crystal clear after just a few seconds because it produces tears just fine.

THIN GOOP:-
Ocumed 0.2 applies and is crystal clear in seconds, and feels much better as it is applied (that nice cold feeling). I'm on the fence as to whether it's any better than Systane though.

Which is better overall - who knows!

Ian.

[Rory]

surely it depends upon which part of the tear that you are lacking..... if you have MGD and produce a thick oil then adding a thick eyedrop will surely worsen symptoms?

conversely you would think that a thinner aqueous drop would dilute this oil...and so be beneficial? I know its not anywhere near that simple ..but

I believe that alot of people worsen their dryness by using the wrong eyedrop....however because so few people really know what their problem is... its very hard to choose the most appropriate eyedrop.

[Deb Pap]

I agree about the thicker dropds for MGD. I tried Systane and it just sat on my lower lids causing pain..so I switched to Refresh Plus and it seems to do better. I guess it just depends on the day. We bought another humidifier and started it up yesterday...hugh imporovement due to the fact we heat with wood which makes the house exceptionally dry!

[brd888]

Ok, interesting. Seems like thick applications are popular - is Celluvisc realy quite thick? I've never used it. Someone said Dakrina is thick but I felt it was runny.

However - here is a quote I've come across:

"The other misconception that still lurks in the mind of eye care professionals and artificial tear manufacturers is that high viscosity results in long retention time and therefore it is advantageous. Indeed, preparations that are 300 times more viscous than aqueous tear are still used in post-lasik eyes. Needless to say such a formulation is unable to form a lubricating layer between the lid and globe and if it did, it would contribute considerably to the epithelial surface damage."

I think when complementing the oil layer remember the concept of oil forming a single molecule layer on water - the excess contained in the meniscus?

Regards,
Bruce