watery Eyes

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TUL50
TUL50 Member Posts: 22
edited 15. Jul 2025, 16:19 in Living with arthritis

Hi, I have been diagnosed with RA for 3 years. In that time I have slowed down a lot, which is totally infuriating. I've also noticed in recent weeks that I have watery eyes. It comes and goes, but wondered if it could be linked to the RA, since this condition is often referred to as Rheumy eyes. Have any of you suffered from it and if so, what treatment did you get? My eyesight is also getting really blurry and my strabisumus procedure in April seems to have failed. It's worse with my glasses. Help!

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  • MaryL44
    MaryL44 Moderator Posts: 213

    Hi @TUL50 I have RA and recently had some concerns about my eyes. I saw an optician who gave me a thorough examination and found no issues. They did explain that RA and the medication we take to deal with it can cause issues with your eyes. So, my advice would be that you should get an eye exam and it will probably put your mind at rest.

    Hope this helps.

    Mary

    Need more help - call our Helpline on 0800 5200 520 Monday to Friday 9am to 6pm

  • iwannerbeme
    iwannerbeme Member Posts: 53

    Hi @TUL50

    I would suggest a complete eye check at the opticians. I have recently had a free one as i am over 60 years old. As drugs such as MXT can cause problems. My check was clear.

    However i have suffered with watery eyes for years, I have something called "dry eye syndrome" its when you cant make enough tears naturally. it is connected with RA. My eyes water a lot, they can feel gritty, like sand is in them, sore or just watery. Mine started years ago, I was given anti biotics twice as it was thought it was an infection, eventually I saw a specialist who diagnosed dry eye syndrome. Treatment is easy, heat! you can get an eye pad and microwave it and wear as a mask, You can steam your face or use a tea towel with hot water and dab your eyes with it. You then massage around your eyes. There are youtubes showing you how to do it correctly. and then just wash the goo out of your eyes. My eyes are much improved. You can also get false tear drops from opticians or GP, I dont use them much as there is a chance they can cause damage long term daily use, but are fine now and again when its really bad. Hope you get it sorted. xx

  • TUL50
    TUL50 Member Posts: 22

    thank you for your responses - I had my eye exam in April, just before my strab procedure (I have botox in my eyes). I'm on the cusp of Type 2 diabetes too, so that might be causing the problem as well. I will give the heat pads a try. I'll also be washing both eyes gently with salt water, since I know this can help with eye boogers.

  • frogmorton
    frogmorton Member Posts: 30,484

    Hi @TUL50I also have dry eyes which can happen to anyone whether they have arthritis or not.

    I have tried the heat eye pads and 'eye hygiene' to no effect then so many different kinds of eye drops to try to alleviate the runny eyes and sometimes seriously gritty painful ones.

    A friend was using a different prescription only one called hylo which has been brilliant. Initially I used it 3/4 times a day i am now down to morning and night. Only have runny eyes in serious wind. You can use this one indefinitely without harming your eyes long term.

    Good luck I hope conservative treatment with eye hygiene and the heat patches is enough for you.

    Toni

  • Hermione
    Hermione Member Posts: 26

    Eye drops for dry eye do not damage your eyes with long-term use. In fact the opposite is true. If you use eye drops regularly, just make sure that you are using preservative-free drops (there are many different brands) as it’s just the preservatives which can cause problems if used more than 3-4 times a day. Most are available over the counter (including Hylo-Forte, etc as Frogmorton mentioned, plus many others) but if you have a diagnosis of dry eye you will be eligible to get these on prescription as they are expensive - but you may need to ask your consultant or optician to write to your GP so they can prescribe in primary care. If you are prescribed drops with preservative (for example some drops for glaucoma which are probably only used once a day), you can ask for a preservative-free alternative. It is really important to know that NOT using eye drops will increase the chance of damage to the surface of the eye. The eyes become desensitised to dryness and you may not be aware that they are dry, so you may not use drops often enough, which causes further desensitisation and more damage. My father is an example: despite my pleading with him to use his drops more often, he had difficulty with his Parkinsons tremor and arthritis which prevented him from using the dry eye drops as frequently as he should have – he went to the opticians complaining that he couldn’t see out of his glasses any more and discovered his eyes were so damaged that he was in danger of losing his sight. Super-urgent referral to ophthalmology and strict instructions to use dry eye drops every hour! There are devices which are designed to help people with limited dexterity to apply drops, but in my experience these are not that good.


    Sounds strange but dry eye syndrome can mean watery eyes. Surgical procedures such as cataract surgery can lead to dry eyes. Sometimes dry eyes can be a symptom of an inflammatory autoimmune rheumatic condition called Sjögren’s Disease, which can be diagnosed by a rheumatology specialist using established diagnostic criteria. The charity Sjögren’s UK https://sjogrensuk.org is a great source of information and they have a brilliant helpline. Sjögren’s is often linked to other autoimmune conditions such as RA, lupus, etc.


    Salt water may help with external cleaning but don’t put tap water in your eyes. Even “clean” tap water contains microorganisms which can infect your eyes (which is why contact lens wearers are told never to wash their lenses in tap water). Eye drops are completely sterile and safe.

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