reflux medication and dry eye?
Hi. I was diagnosed back in March. At first, heat, drops and eyelid cleaning was keeping symptoms somewhat manageable. I was getting into a routine and it was fine. Tried xiidra for a few months, did nothing, now im on month 2 of restasis, so we will see.
A few weeks ago my eyes got worse out of nowhere! I'm so frustrated. I was doing some more research and now it seems that my reflux medications may be making my dry eye worse and they may even be the cause! Has anyone else experienced dry eye b/c of medication? Did going off the medication help at all? I've only been on the reflux meds for the past 3 years...I was diagnosed w reflux likely from stress during covid and the symptoms are still here. There are other ways to manage it without meds which I think now I should be exploring...
Hello
, thank you for reaching out! I hear how much you are struggling with your new diagnosis of chronic dry eye (CDE). It is so frustrating when symptoms suddenly worsen without any discernible cause. Did you reach out to your eye doctor to discuss the uptick in your symptoms? They might have some suggestions for you. Certain medications can indeed cause or contribute to CDE. You mentioned having an acid reflux diagnosis and treatment plan. While I do not know which medication you take for that, a common treatment for reflux is a proton pump inhibitor (PPI) which is a drug known for CDE complications. This article gives some information about the drugs that can cause CDE that you might find of interest: https://chronicdryeye.net/medicine-risks As far as if stopping those drugs can help ease CDE, I would encourage you to ask that question of your doctors. It is important to discuss the reflux medication with both your eye doctor and the prescribing doctor (assuming those are different people!) before you make a decision about whether to suspend the treatment. While this patient leader was on a different medication type that was affecting her dry eyes, I thought you might appreciate her perspective on her journey of CDE and hormone replacement therapy medication: https://chronicdryeye.net/living/dry-eye-detective
I hope some of this might be helpful for you! How are you feeling today? Please keep us posted on what you learn and how your CDE management proceeds. Know we are here to listen when you need a friendly ear. Wishing you a gentle day. ~Allyson (team member)
Thank you! Yes, I am on a ppi, and that is what I think the culprit is. Unfortunately the eye doctor I saw did not review my list of medications with me to see if any of those could have caused the dry eye. I am seeing a new eye doc in November b/c I am frustrated with my current doctor. I have also reached out to my GI doctor (who I love) to discuss alternate treatments for my reflux. I am frustrated that if I had known about this in advance I could have been monitoring for symptoms and could have made a change months ago...
, I'm glad you are seeing a new eye doctor after everything you've been through recently. It's important to have doctors you can trust to provide you with all the relevant information - and to go over your medication list to identify any treatments that might create issues. It's great that you do have a good relationship with your GI doctor! Hopefully they will have some alternate options for you. I hear how frustrating it feels to know you could have done things differently had you been fully informed. Please keep us posted on how things progress for you. Hopefully between your GI doctor and the new eye doctor you can improve the dry eye symptoms! Wishing you a gentle day. ~Allyson (team member)
Yes, medication can sometimes worsen dry eye symptoms. Reflux medications like proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) have been associated with dry eye as a potential side effect. Going off the medication may improve dry eye, but it's essential to consult your healthcare provider first to discuss alternative reflux management strategies. Lifestyle changes, dietary adjustments, and stress reduction techniques can be explored to manage reflux without medication while monitoring the impact on your dry eye symptoms.
Is Pepcid a PPI?
Hi
. Pepcid is not a PPI. It is an H2 blocker, which works entirely differently. Here is a fact sheet from the manufacturer that might interest you: https://www.pepcid.com/faq. I hope this helps. Best wishes. Lori (Team Member)
