Signs, symptoms and common causes
Burning, watering, blur that clears when you blink: the everyday signals, and what tends to drive them.
Read guideDry eye disease is a common, long-term condition where the tear film that protects the front of your eye stops doing its job. It’s far more than the occasional gritty feeling. For many people it’s a daily source of discomfort and blurred, fluctuating vision.
Your tear film, briefly
A healthy tear film has three layers working together: an oily outer layer that stops tears evaporating, a watery middle layer that hydrates, and a mucin layer that helps everything stick to the eye. When any of these falls out of balance, the surface dries out and becomes inflamed.
Why it matters
Left unmanaged, dry eye tends to get worse, not better, and the inflammation can become self-sustaining. The good news: once the underlying cause is identified, it responds well to treatment.
Ready to act? Find a dry eye clinic near you or read about the treatments available.