Eyes fluctuate between 100% normal and severely dry.. diagnosis possibility?

[avocadoeyes]

Hello all, I won't go into my history too much as it is a long one but quick key things: I am 20yo female, non-contact lens wearer, no other conditions, only relevant history is course of low dose (10 mg every 2 days) accutane. Dry eye was sudden onset.

For about 4 months now, my eyes have been dry, but it is not a consistent dry. I have tried to identify triggers but literally how I feel makes no sense.
Example: had a 7 hour flight in winter, no drops or moisture goggles, have been told airplane is the least humid/worst place for dry eye. Yet the whole flight my eyes were white and pain-free.
But then, I could have a day where I've done my hot compress, put various ointments/drops in my eyes, be sitting in my room next to the humidifier, and have almost unbearable dry eye where I can't keep my eyes open more than a few seconds and crazy red veins in my eyes.

There really is no clear correlation between my environment/treatment and my symptoms.

I have had up to 2 weeks of perfect eyes, where I thought I was cured, only for them to return to painful and uncomfortable for the next few weeks.
My only eye exam finding was a low LLT in both eyes (something in the 60s).

Is it normal for dry eye to fluctuate this much??? Is it possible I have something else that is causing the DE? Maybe occular rosacea?

Thanks a bunch
x

[deep_dry_eye]

There is high variance in the disease , I have no concrete explanation . Since you are female, may I ask is it correlated to your period? There are theories that its hormones play an effect.

[hopeful_hiker]

Drops may be irritating your eyes. Hormones are also a common culprit. Finally, symptoms and signs are often different—no direct correlation. I would recommend tracking diet, sleep, and eye regimen.

And yes, I also have these issues. Several times I went from good to very bad to ok in a matter of days.

[Guest]

I think one of the best places you can start is write a journal of EVERY activity that you do. What you eat, how you slept, where you went, if you took a shower, if your stomach was upset. It seems like you can’t find a pattern. I would also suggest stopping the accurate if you’re still on it. I also think you need to see a good dry eye specialist before these bad days become more frequent. Clearly something is out of whack. The good news is you have your days. So finding the cause coukd really save you right now. Look for patterns, see a good dry eye specialist, keep looking for answers. Try not to allow too much time to pass. Get on top of this, good luck.

[hannahmaywils]

Accutane causes dry eye