Best drops available in UK?

[saltysam]

Hi All, i'm in the UK and after a few weeks of what i can only describe as a burning sensation in my eyes i've been told by an eye nurse and an optician i have dry eyes.Optician told me my tears were breaking up after 3 seconds. I'm a 44 year old male and spend way too much time on the computer both work and leisure which has probably contributed. This is such an informative forum,well done to all who contribute! i was wondering what success people have had with drops available in the uk, i was given viscotears by the eye nurse but then i heard it contains preservatives, the optician recommended Isopto Plain but i hear the ingredients in that are not good. i'm currently using Theratears preservative free drops during the day and using the liquid version at night.naturally here in the uk they are pretty expensive! Are there any good ones i could ask my GP for on prescription?thanks in advance

[Guest]

Saltysam

Welcome to the board from a fellow UK sufferer.

Unfortunately, your question doesn't have a simple answer. There isn't 1 good drop, it is a matter of finding something that works for you.

The choice in the UK is somewhat limited and the medical knowledge surrounding dry eyes in the UK appears to be even more limited than the drops available.

I have not heard of the drops recommended by your optician.

Your best bet is to look for preservative free first, then drops that are preserved by something other than BAK.

I personally like Clinitas Ultra 3 and Clinitas Soothe both or which should be available on prescription but some GP's will not be aware of them.

You could try Viscotears Preservative free or some of the Refresh range.

Systane is good but not widely available.

As stated earlier, avoid drops that contain BAK (a pretty nasty preservative) and you may have to try several different ones before you find something that you like and works for you.

Sorry to be evasive on the topic but myself like everyone else here have had to try numerous drops to find something that gives some degree of comfort.

I wish you well

Ian

[saltysam]

Thanks for the welcome Ian. the drops the optician recommended contained BAK ! I've been given some systane vials from a friend's eye nurse relative,unfortunately they are out of date so i'm a little wary of using them despite assurances they'll be ok. Viscotears preservative free or Refresh celluvisc? i might give them a try. the Theratears gel at night seems to be pretty good. on another note it's quite soul destroying to see how this condition is trivilalised here in the UK,from my experience the eye nurse wouldn't even let me see a doctor,just told me i had dry eye and told me to take drops,the optician was nicer but then she recommends a drop with BK in! I have also been ill since new year when i suddenly could hardly walk and my arms stiffened and ached as well.i was hospitalised and told i had acute gout (though i had no uric acid in my blood) My joint pain has subsided but i have these dry eyes which i know can be connected,told my rheumatologist at my appointment Friday,he wasn't interested!

[irish eyes]

Ian is right - drops are an individual thing so it isn't really possible to promote one over an another. I have difficulty with them all.

And you are right when you say that this condition is trivialised by the NHS. When you said that the Eye Nurse wouldn't let you see the doctor, do you mean someone in the actual clinic or did you go through Casualty? (Experience has turned me into a veritable battleaxe - !)

I'm also very surprised that you say the Rheumatologist wasn't interested. Did he do any tests?

If you want to contact me via private mail, I can send you a few vials of drops to try Ocumed, Systane - might have a couple of Clinitas ones also. They are still in date.

[saltysam]

Ian is right - drops are an individual thing so it isn't really possible to promote one over an another. I have difficulty with them all.

And you are right when you say that this condition is trivialised by the NHS. When you said that the Eye Nurse wouldn't let you see the doctor, do you mean someone in the actual clinic or did you go through Casualty? (Experience has turned me into a veritable battleaxe - !)

I'm also very surprised that you say the Rheumatologist wasn't interested. Did he do any tests?

If you want to contact me via private mail, I can send you a few vials of drops to try Ocumed, Systane - might have a couple of Clinitas ones also. They are still in date.

Hi Irish Eyes-yes took myself down to casualty a couple of weeks ago,it was a Saturday,the nurse's opening words were "if you need to see a doctor you'll be here all day there's only one on" she then put something in my eye then put two strips under my eyelids,went away for a few minutes,came back and said "yep dry". She then had another look at my eyes,gave me a tube of viscotears and told me to buy drops over the counter as they are cheaper than prescription.She also said she had dry eyes herself.

Regarding the Rheumatologist that's another saga,when i was hospitalised i was given the diagnosis of acute gout,while off work my company paid for me to see a private specialist who examined me physically all over and thought i'd had a viral infection that had caused my problems (when i saw him my eyes weren't too bad though) then Friday i see my NHS one who still thinks it was gout.I've had plenty of blood tests and i had more on Friday, they've been clear apart from some cholesterol and inflammation in the blood at the time of my attack. i was surprised when he shrugged off the dry eyes as nothing ,i thought he would've looked into it.Don't go back until the 26th June.Thanks a lot for the offer of the vials,will pm you