Why is Visine bad?
- Thread starter Dominic
- Start date
Visine is an ocular decongestant that is used to "get the red out" by constricting the blood vessels in the conjunctiva. (You'll learn all about this when you take ocular pharmacology. 😉 ) The problem is that with chronic use, you can get rebound redness. For dry eye it's better to use a lubricating drop like Refresh or Thera-tears that basically just replaces your tears.Dominic said:
It depends on the cause of the redness
- Joined
- May 25, 2004
- Messages
- 353
- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 0
Dominic said:
Visine is good for occasional use to relieve symptoms of itching and redness due to allergies. It is not good for dryness since there is an antihistamine component to it that will dry you out even further.
The symptoms of dryness and allergies can sometimes be similar so an eye exam is usually recommended if you are using visine more than once or twice a week.
Jenny
- Joined
- Feb 21, 2004
- Messages
- 13,864
- Reaction score
- 40
- Points
- 4,671
- Medical Student
- Resident [Any Field]
r_salis said:
Where can you get this Thera-tears or Refresh stuff??? I use visine all the time, but if it isn't good then perhaps I should start using something else. Can I obtain these alternatives in a place like walmart or local drug store?
They're all available at the drugstore, usually where the contact lens solutions are.gujuDoc said:
(Just a note about Visine -- they do have a product called "Visine Tears Lubricant", which is just a plain lubricant eye drop. This wouldn't cause the rebound redness problem.)
- Joined
- Sep 26, 2004
- Messages
- 22
- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 0
Patanol - It takes about a month to start to see its results. But if you are using visine as much as you say then this would be the drug of choice for allergies. If your problem is more to do with dry eyes thera tears would be ok. Restatsis might be a better choice for you. The bottom line is that you need to see an optometrist so that they can determine what would work best for you.
1. "Disguises" or minimizes the clinical signs and symptoms of a possibly more significant eye or systmeic problem.
2. It is common that "redness" is sole symptom and sign. Treating just this one symptom or sign means that the other symptoms and signs can progress with a false sense of security that the user is "being treated".
3 The constituents (such as preservative and vehicle) can itself be aggravating if used injudiciously.
Richard_Hom
2. It is common that "redness" is sole symptom and sign. Treating just this one symptom or sign means that the other symptoms and signs can progress with a false sense of security that the user is "being treated".
3 The constituents (such as preservative and vehicle) can itself be aggravating if used injudiciously.
Richard_Hom
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2004
- Messages
- 29,121
- Reaction score
- 64,064
- Points
- 12,236
- Attending Physician
parazoa said:
For what my opinion is worth, I'm a big fan of Restasis (though it is pricey and takes some time for the effects to be noticed). Elistat has replaced Patanol as my allergy drop of choice, keeping in mind I'm no doctor just a guy with real bad allergies.
- Joined
- May 23, 2005
- Messages
- 25
- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 0
xmattODx said:
Actually a good answer. Then the attending O.D. could Rx Patanol or another mast-cell stabalizer to prevent histamine release that causes the itch, and redness.
as an eye drop user (mostly for dry eye, not allergies), i've noticed empirically that visine (i have a generic tetrahydrazoline) stings like heck. I tried thera-tears, they were ok (stung too a little), but Genteal drops seem to feel the best and relieve the burning when my eyes get really dry.
- Joined
- May 25, 2004
- Messages
- 353
- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 0
VA Hopeful Dr said:
Restasis is not indicated for the treatment of allergic conjunctivitis and it's only indicated for a very specific type of dry eye.
Have you been using it to treat allergies? Have you had good luck?
Jenny
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2004
- Messages
- 29,121
- Reaction score
- 64,064
- Points
- 12,236
- Attending Physician
JennyW said:
Let me start off, I'm neither MD nor OD (I start med school in the fall) but my father was an OD and he used to use me as his test subject for new allergy drops, so from the patient standpoint I know a good bit about them.
You're right, restasis isn't designed for allergies, but it works wonders on mine. For the first 3 months I was on it, I used twice a day (wake up and bedtime) then tapered to just bedtime. No allergy problems, in the eyes at least, since then. Before this I'd tried Patanol and Elistat (big fan of both), Alocril (worst ever), Alrex (which I've found is really good at keeping the allergies down after stabilizing with something else), and Lotemax if it gets really, really bad (but never as a long term fix, of course). However after about 3 months, give or take a week, Restasis was better at controlling my allergies than any of these others. I even tried going off Restasis for about a week and back to Elistat, didn't work as well.
Anyway, to make a real long, drawn out story short, here is what dad did in terms of restasis and allergic conjunctivitis: for people who only occasionally needed eye drops, he'd give Patanol or Elistat; for patients who had a severe enough case to require daily drops of either of those, he would try restasis first. Most of these patients reported that their allergies got significantly better, so yes; I'd say Restasis works well with allergies.
- Joined
- May 23, 2005
- Messages
- 25
- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 0
VA Hopeful Dr said:
VA Hopeful Dr
Intersting post. Your personal experiences are valuable info. While JennyW is correct that Restasis is not indicated for clinical use for allergy, the fact that it works opens another thought. The cyclosporine (Restasis) is intended to reduce inflammation in the lacrimal gland and thus increase volume of tears. With an increased volume of tears, ones normal self defense is increased. It also would allow for better "eye-washing" to flood antigens away from the eye surface. It is easy to understand that Restasis could be very helpful in many allergy cases. It is also possible to have allergies and not have inflammation in the lacrimal gland, thus Restasis would be of no help. Now question for Allergan R&D dept or someone out in the field. Do allergies always cause lacrimal gland inflammation? They could in theory. With clinical trials, perhaps Restasis will become a main line drug against allergies. Very helpful insight VaHopeful.
- Joined
- Feb 24, 2005
- Messages
- 2,697
- Reaction score
- 12
- Points
- 4,621
- Location
- In a world all my own.
- Pre-Health (Field Undecided)
What about Refresh Liquigel from Allergan.
I use the severe dry eye formula. It is 1% Carboxymethylcellulose, and it works wonders for me.
I have a pinguecla (sp?) that gets irritated from time to time.
Is thii stuff okay?
I use the severe dry eye formula. It is 1% Carboxymethylcellulose, and it works wonders for me.
I have a pinguecla (sp?) that gets irritated from time to time.
Is thii stuff okay?
I love that stuff. They make it in single-dose containers (all the manufacturers do), too, for people who are want a preservative-free drop.sunnyjohn said:
