Our tears play a critical role in keeping our eyes healthy, continually bathing the eye surface to wash away irritants while moistening our eyes and reducing the risk of infection. When our eyes water, it’s often a sign that something’s “off” with the production or distribution of our tears. It can also mean it’s time to visit the eye doctor to determine what’s going on.
At Vision and Ortho-K Center, Curtis Frank, OD, performs comprehensive eye exams to get to the root cause of excess watering (or epiphora). Here, learn what causes eye watering, so you can decide when it’s time to seek treatment.
From the name alone, dry eye syndrome doesn’t sound like a condition associated with excess tearing. To understand the connection between dry eye syndrome and watery eyes, you need to know a little bit about the makeup of tears.
Tears are have three layers:
Tiny glands in your eyelids produce tears, and your lids spread them across the eye surface.
Dry eye syndrome happens when your eyes don’t make enough tears or when the tear film itself is compromised, typically containing less oil or mucus. This allows tears to evaporate too rapidly, increasing irritation in the eye. In response, your eyes produce more tears, creating a cycle that in turn leads to excessive watering.
After bathing your eyes, the “used” tears drain away through tiny openings in the corners of your eyes called puncta. As long as these tear ducts are opening and functioning, the amount of tears in your eyes remains stable. But if the ducts are blocked, tear drainage slows down or stops, and excess tears are left to spill over your lids.
Like dry eye syndrome, blocked ducts become more common with age as the tiny puncta narrow and tear drainage slows. But blockages can be caused by trauma, infections, and inflammation or swelling around the ducts, too.
Infection and irritation can cause excessive watering, too. Conjunctivitis (pink eye) is a common eye infection that’s associated with excessive watering. Blepharitis is an inflammation of your eyelid margins, and it can also lead to increased tear production. Any type of infection should be treated promptly to avoid serious complications, like a permanent loss of vision.
Chalazion and ingrown eyelashes can cause irritation and excess tearing, as well, and so can exposure to irritants, like chemicals or smoke. While these issues may sound mild, without proper treatment, they can increase the risk of infections and other serious issues that affect your vision.
Excessive tearing isn’t normal, and while occasional tearing may not be anything to worry about, chronic or recurrent eye watering definitely needs to be evaluated to prevent complications, like corneal damage or infection.
To find out why your eyes are watering and what we can do to help protect your eyes and your vision, call to request an appointment with Dr. Frank and the team at Vision and Ortho-K Center in Boston and Newton Upper Falls, Massachusetts.
