EyeWise Vision Clinic

Dry Eye Treatment in Singapore

Suffering from dry eyes? You know how uncomfortable it can be. Your eyes may feel scratchy or irritated, and they may even water in an attempt to lubricate themselves. If you’re looking for relief, you may want to consult a dry eye specialist.

What is Dry Eye?

Dry eye is a condition where the eyes do not produce enough tears, or the tears produced are of poor quality. This can lead to discomfort, blurred vision, and an increased risk of eye infections.

There are many possible causes of dry eye, including:

  • Excess use of computers
  • Ageing
  • Medical conditions that can cause dry eyes such as autoimmune conditions like SLE (Systemic Lupus Erythematosus), rheumatoid arthritis
  • Environmental factors such as dry climates
  • Sitting under aircon vent
  • Use of contact lenses

If you think you may have dry eyes, visit our eye care clinic in Singapore to consult our expert eye doctor for a proper diagnosis and treatment plan.

Dry Eye Diagnosis

To diagnose dry eye in a patient, the ophthalmologist at our eye specialist clinic in Singapore will examine the patient using a slit lamp to look at the tear layer in the eye (tear strip). This is done to see if there is enough water in the tears, then the ophthalmologist will apply yellow eye drops to see if the tear layer over the cornea is even and good. If needed, our ophthalmologist can measure if there is enough water content in the tears via a Schirmer’s test. From the diagnosis, the ophthalmologist can determine what eye drops to use and what treatment is needed.

Dry Eye Treatment

Dry eye can be a very frustrating condition, but there are many effective treatments available for dry eye syndrome. By consulting a dry eye specialist, you can find the right treatment for you and get relief for your symptoms.

The most common treatments for dry eye includes:

Eye drops

  • Lubrication eye drops that replace tears that are insufficient.
  • Eye Drops that allow the production of more natural tears
  • A thicker eye drop (a gel) can also be used for patients with dryer eyes. However, it can cause a little blurring.

Dietary supplements

If eye drops are not effective, your doctor may prescribe or suggest dietary supplements to treat dry eye.

Out of these treatment options, eye drops are tailor-made according to symptoms and severity. If the condition is severe, punctal plugs are needed. A punctal plug, also known as a tear duct plug or lacrimal plug, is placed in the drainage tube which lasts for 6 months and drastically improves comfort and reduces the need for eye drops.

At EyeWise Vision clinic in Singapore, the treatment for dry eye is done after testing how dry the eyes are, using an evidence-based approach. Even for other eye conditions, which can require treatments such as glaucoma surgery, cataract surgery and others, the evidence-based approach is used as well. Contact us today to book an appointment.

Frequently Asked Questions About Dry Eyes Treatment in Singapore

There are many possible causes of dry eye, but the most common one is simply not enough tears. Tears are important for keeping our eyes healthy and lubricated, so when we don’t have enough of them, our eyes can start to feel dry, irritated, and even painful.
There is not a single treatment that will fit all types of dry eye conditions. The most effective approach depends on the underlying cause of your dry eye condition. However, there are some general treatments that can help relieve the symptoms of dry eye, such as eye drops, and dietary supplements. If your dry eye is due to a more serious condition, surgery may be needed to correct the problem.
You can attempt to permanently cure dry eye in a few different ways. One way is to use eye drops as suggested by your doctor. The treatment for permanently curing dry eyes, or whether they can be permanently cured or not, can only be determined by the dry eye specialist after proper examination.

An ophthalmologist is an eye specialist who can help diagnose and treat dry eye. They can prescribe medication or treatment to help reduce the symptoms of dry eye only after examining the condition of the dry eyes. Our ophthalmologist in Singapore can also diagnose and treat other eye conditions.

If a dry eye is not treated, it can lead to more serious problems such as corneal ulcers or infections. Untreated dry eye can also cause vision issues. If you think you have dry eye, book an appointment with our eye specialist in Singapore for a proper diagnosis and treatment plan.

About Dr Christopher Khng

Dr. Christopher Khng, specialises in Complex Cataract and Anterior Segment Reconstruction Surgery, in particular, Iris Reconstruction and Surgery for Aniridia. His other areas of expertise include Complex Lens surgery, New Lens and Phacoemulsification technologies, Refractive surgery, Phakic IOLs (the Implantable Collamer Lens, ICL), and small-incision, topical anesthesia phacoemulsification cataract surgery.

He completed his first two years of medical undergraduate studies in Aberdeen University, Scotland (UK), finishing top in his medical class in both years. Because of cost, he completed his medical degrees of MBBS at National University of Singapore (NUS).

Dr. Khng served as Registrar, then Associate Consultant Ophthalmic Surgeon at the Singapore National Eye Centre (SNEC). Following his stint in SNEC, Dr. Khng was a Consultant at The Eye Institute, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore.

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Dr Christopher Khng

MBBS, M.Med(Ophth), FRCS(Edin), AMS(Ophth 2003) Consultant Ophthalmologist