Desai, what causes dry eye syndrome?
A. As I point out in my patient’s guide to dry eye, there are many predisposing factors that can lead to various forms of dry eye syndrome. The common link among the causes is that they all result in inflammation within tear-producing glands of the eye and on the ocular surface. This inflammatory response is disruptive to the delicate balance within normal, healthy tears and results in a decline in the quantity and quality of tears produced. Q. Dr. Weinstock, what is the importance of the quantity and quality of tears produced? A. When light enters the eye, the very first thing it hits is the cornea, or window into the eye. Normally, the cornea is coated with tears. However, if healthy tears are not coating the cornea, it dries out and no longer has a nice, smooth surface for you to look through, so no matter how good your eyes are, your lens implant is, or your LASIK surgery was, your vision can’t be good if the cornea does not have a healthy, smooth layer of tears over it. Q. What do
