Watery Eyes - Other Common Eye Diseases Of Later Life: The Aging Eye Preventing And Treating Eye Disease

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Watery eyes

Although some people suffer from dry eyes as they grow older, others suffer from the opposite problem — watery eyes. It may seem counterintuitive, but often this problem develops because of dry eye syndrome: Because dry eyes are uncomfortable, the eyes reflexively produce more tears. At other times, watery eyes are the result of tear drainage problems. Normally tears drain from the surface of your eyes, flow past the eyelids, and pass down into the nasal passages. But if this drainage system becomes obstructed for some reason, tears build up in the eyes until they spill over the lids. At other times, watery eyes develop as a complication of an eyelid problem or because of an infection.

Your doctor diagnoses the cause of watery eyes by examining your eyes and conducting medical tests to determine why the problem has developed. Analyzing tear samples reveals whether an infection is to blame, for example. Or the doctor may perform a Schirmer's test to gauge tear production. Another test involves irrigation of the lacrimal drainage system, to determine whether tear drainage is normal, and if not, where the blockage is occurring.

Treatment for watery eyes depends on the cause. If dry eye syndrome is causing excessive reflexive tearing, then the solution is to remedy the dry eyes (see previous section). When an infection is to blame, your doctor will most likely prescribe antibiotics.

If the problem is an obstruction in the drainage system, then surgery may help. If the obstruction occurs in the part of the eyelid where the drainage system begins (the punctum), a procedure known as punctoplasty is performed to widen the opening. Punctoplasty is usually performed under local anesthesia and takes 20–30 minutes. If the obstruction occurs in the nasolacrimal duct, located further along the drainage system, then a dacryocystorhinostomy may be performed. This procedure, which involves bypassing the blockage and constructing a new drainage pathway, typically is performed under general anesthesia and takes about an hour. If eyelid problems have developed, the eyelids can be repositioned surgically to alleviate watery eyes.

Last updated:	June 19, 2007