How often should someone with dry eyes be checked by a doctor?

[desertcry]

I was wondering this because I never get any follow up controls when I make an appointment. The last time a doctor said it was very dry and gave me a three month eye drop treatment (starting with 8x dripping per day and reducing to 4x dripping -and then stoping). It's almost like the dry eye problems are curable and that the eye drops will cure the situation.

It seems to me very dangerous stopping with eye drops for a long time without any checks. Could you not develop all types of eye diseases/problems? I wonder why there's no follow-up appointment.

Also what makes me very mad: is that I never get an appointment with the (a) doctor at the laser-center. Before I had laser surgery it was easy to make an appointment but afterwards it seems impossible.

anyway, how often do you think the eyes should be checked?

[stephgurl1986]

I don't know how often they should be checked. I still have a healthy cornea but I get my eyes checked every 3months...

[bassfan]

It seems to me very dangerous stopping with eye drops for a long time without any checks. Could you not develop all types of eye diseases/problems? I wonder why there's no follow-up appointment.

From all the doctors I've talked to, they've all told me that theres not really any "serious" diseases or long term things that can come from DES. Im sure thats open for debate.

Before I had laser surgery it was easy to make an appointment but afterwards it seems impossible.

They got the easy money already...

[Rebecca Petris]

Desertcry,

I would recommend posting this question to Dr. Latkany in the Q&A forum. It is an important question. Adults with healthy eyes should have regular eye exams. But dry eyes are more vulnerable to other conditions (allergies, infections etc) AND there is overlap in the symptoms of dry eye and of other conditions, so it stands to reason we should be seen more frequently.

Unfortunately, adverse experiences at eye doctors' offices can make us shy of seeking appointments/help even when we most need it.

But we really should be seen:

• when we have a new concern
• for follow-up on specific new therapies we've been prescribed
• at regular intervals that are presumably more frequent than people with healthy eyes
• frequently for eye pressure monitoring if taking a topical steroid

[kitty]

I just do what my doc says. That used to mean every year, but now that I have started developing cataracts it is every 6 months. Early after my DES diagnosis I was seen every 2 weeks to 3 months. Once I exhausted all treatment options, that was the end of follow up. Funny, it seems like they take more interest in things like cataracts. Ain't getting old grand!

[Lucy]

Funny, it seems like they take more interest in things like cataracts

Of course they do, Kitty. Dry eye is not a very lucrative business for an eye doc. (I'm not insisting that cataract surgery is either, but it does pay a bit better than dry eye visits.) Sorry, been there.....still have one to go.
Lucy