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Symptoms

By Mayo Clinic staff

Signs and symptoms, which usually affect both eyes, may include:

  • A stinging, burning or scratchy sensation in your eyes
  • Stringy mucus in or around your eyes
  • Increased eye irritation from smoke or wind
  • Eye fatigue
  • Sensitivity to light
  • Eye redness
  • A sensation of having something in your eyes
  • Difficulty wearing contact lenses
  • Periods of excessive tearing
  • Blurred vision, often worsening at the end of the day or after focusing for a prolonged period

When to see a doctor
See your doctor if you've had prolonged signs and symptoms of dry eyes, including red, irritated, tired or painful eyes. Your doctor can take steps to determine what's bothering your eyes or refer you to a specialist.

Causes Definition

  • See Also

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References
  1. Facts about dry eye. National Eye Institute. http://www.nei.nih.gov/health/dryeye/dryeye.asp. Accessed June 14, 2012
  2. Preferred Practice Pattern: Dry eye syndrome. San Francisco, Calif.: American Academy of Ophthalmology. http://one.aao.org/CE/PracticeGuidelines/PPP_Content.aspx?cid=127dbdce-4271-471a-b6d9-464b9d15b748. Accessed June 14, 2012.
  3. Shtein RM. Dry eyes. http://www.uptodate.com/index. Accessed June 14, 2012.
  4. Yao W, et al. Dry eye syndrome: An update in office management. The American Journal of Medicine. 2011;124:1016.
  5. Stevenson W, et al. Dry eye disease. Archives of Ophthalmology. 2012;130:90.
  6. Treatment. TearScience.com. http://www.tearscience.com/physician/in-officeprocedure/treatment/. Accessed June 21, 2012.
  7. Care of the patient with ocular surface disorders. St. Louis, Mo.: American Optometric Association. http://www.aoa.org/x4813.xml.  Accessed June 14, 2012.
  8. Rand AL, et al. Nutritional supplements for dry eye syndrome. Current Opinion in Ophthalmology. 2011;22:279.
  9. Arita R, et al. Caffeine increases tear volume depending on polymorphisms within the adenosine a2a receptor gene and cytochrome p450 1a2. Ophthalmology 2012;119:972.
  10. Robertson DM (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. June 27, 2012.
DS00463 Aug. 4, 2012

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