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Dry eye: the signs, who is at risk, the eye exam, and treatment
For anyone whose eyes burn, sting, feel scratchy or look red; anyone who looks at a screen most of the day or wears contact lenses; anyone whose dry eyes started with a new medicine, after laser eye surgery, with age, pregnancy or menopause, or with diabetes, a thyroid problem, lupus or Sjögren syndrome; and anyone for whom drops from the store are not helping. The National Eye Institute (NEI, part of the NIH) says dry eye happens when your eyes don’t make enough tears to stay wet, or when your tears don’t work correctly; that it is common, affecting millions of Americans every year; that if severe dry eye isn’t treated it can sometimes damage the cornea; and that there are lots of things you can do to keep your eyes healthy and stay comfortable. This page passes on, by name, what NEI says: the signs, who is more likely to get it and what causes it, the eye exam and the tear tests, everyday changes that may help, and the treatments. It builds the words to say to an eye doctor, and prints a card to keep.
Right now
- A hurt eye (a chemical, a speck, a blow, a cut), sudden eye pain, or a sudden change in your sight? Don’t wait on it as dry eye: use the eye injury page, go to an eye doctor or an emergency room, and call 911 in an emergency (ours).
- Thoughts of suicide? Call or text 988, any hour (ours).
More help
- Linked to it, on this site: Eyes and sight: find the right page · An eye injury · Eye care · Sjögren’s disease · Lupus · An overactive thyroid · Menopause · Diabetes.
- Care and costs: When you need a doctor and can’t pay · My medicines · Get ready for your appointment.
- In a crisis: Help right now (988, 911). All our free tools.
Your eyes or your sight, and not sure this is the right page? The pages on this site for a hurt or pink eye, glaucoma, cataracts, diabetes and the eyes, macular degeneration, a detached retina, dry eye, fading sight and eye care you can afford, on one list.
This page and its wording were written with AI (Claude) for Scarlet Beast (our AI policy). No doctor or nurse has reviewed it. The facts were read on October 16, 2026 on three National Eye Institute (NIH) pages: Dry Eye (last updated August 6, 2025), Causes of Dry Eye (December 6, 2024) and Testing for Dry Eye (August 6, 2025). Ours: not waiting on a hurt eye, sudden eye pain or a sudden change in sight as dry eye, and 911 in an emergency; 988 for thoughts of suicide; not stopping a medicine on your own; what to bring to the eye exam; the questions to ask at a visit; health centers when money is tight; and the order of the steps. What we left out: the brand names of the two prescription eye drops NEI names (we give the medicine names only), research news, and NEI’s video. This page saves nothing and loads no trackers.