I have been using hypromellose eye drops for a while because, particularly from Spring to autumn, I have itchy, gritty, dry eyes. This year they're worse than ever making my vision very blurred and no amount of hypromellose will fix it.
Last week I went to get my eyes tested, thinking the blurred vision might also have something to do with not having had new specs for nearly 3 years. The optician recommended I tell my doctor to prescribe either Hylo Forte eye drops or Carbomer Gel. I'm just about to contact my doctor but rather than say "either this or that" I thought I'd ask you first.
Which one, in your opinion, is most effective, less irritable when applied, lasts longer etc?
Thank you.
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Whippet_lady
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I suspect it depends on you - lots of people recommended Hyloforte to me but I didn't like them as much as what is actually the cheapest available to me here in Italy, We pay for things like that here - so 13 euros compared with over 20 was notable!
I was prescribed both Xailin and Hylo-Forte. I have the same symptoms as you, but also redness and some pain at times, relating to my very dry eyes. I believe I have Sjogrens, although not yet confirmed. (Dry mucus membranes). Hylo Forte has something like 300 applications and you can use it up until it’s finished. I was prescribed the Hylo forte for during the day and the carbomer gel for night. The gel is more for at night I'd say as it makes my eyes quite blurry after use. I was using viscotears prior to that but they have a preservative and because I needed it more, it wasn’t good for my eyes.
hylo forte has versions that contains an ingredient for itchy or allergy eyes or one that is normal that does not. You could ask your Dr to prescribe the allergy one during the summer and the normal one for the rest of the time when pollens are not about.
Scope make Hylo forte, they are very helpful in suggesting the right product. You could try buying from them direct first and then asking Gp to prescribe.
I've been getting Hylo forte on prescription for a few years and found them helpful (same as Hycosan Extra but a bigger bottle)
Recently I've tried putting pharmaceutical grade castor oil in my eyes just before going to sleep, doesn't seem to make my eyes more blurry than night-time gels and my eyes are feeling less gritty.
Hylo forte would be your choice eye drop of choice , if you have SLE/ Lupus as you will find any creams ,gels will make your eyes gritty, sore As for me it made my eye very red and inflamed and gritty. They are no go for use with SLE/Lupus sufferers. I went through with it a lot when I has my cataract op. NHS Doctors think they know best when you tell them you cannot tolerate creams and certain drops they keep pushing and giving you the same thing. I ended up seeing a private eye corneal specialist for my eye because it effected my cornea and my pupil was infected and inflamed. So ended having Pure Steriod drops plus Hylo Forte .
I was already on Hylo forte prior to surgery actually for quite a few years.
I’m surprised your optician didn’t prescribe them for you, my GP practice doesn’t prescribe eye drops. You have to listen to the list before you get through to a receptionist and one of them is If you have an eye problem, see your optician. If I need an antibiotic eye drop I have to go to my nearest optician as even the pharmacy won’t give me them without a prescription now. I managed to get some as an emergency from my ophthalmologist at the hospital as it’s such a rigmarole getting them.
I use hyloforte which I get on prescription about four times a day with a spray of actimist on top to seal the drops in. At night I use hycosan night which is a gel and stops the eyes getting so dry overnight. What really helps is a usb hot eye mask twice a day for 10 minutes a time. Most of us have a meibomium gland deficiency in that the oil in our glands turns to butter and therefore the oil doesn't seal our tears in. Helps with sore eyes no end. Make sure your eye drops are preservative free that's important and see an ophthalmologist if you can not just an optician. They can do things like squeeze your meibomium glands etc. My eyes still blur and unfortunately there's not much we can do about that but you can be vigilant with the above which does help a lot. When I was undiagnosed my eyes were going bloodshot a lot and then I developed a cyst on my eyeball. That has all stopped since I've been vigilant with drops, spray and eye mask. Hope that helps. Sorry there's no easy fix.
Hylo-forte 0.2% is great. As far as I recall If you're using drops more than 4 times a day you should be using preservative free. Hylo- forte 0.2% lasts for 6 months once open and is easy to apply without having to use a mirror.
Xalin night is easy and comfortable to use at night and while it can be a bit blurry for a short while I will also use it during the day if my eyes are particularly sore.
Punctal plugs are an absolute game changer with dry eye. They are tiny opaque implants inserted into the lower tear ducts (and upper tear ducts if ongoing issue). By blocking drainage of tears (60% with lower ducts) it means any of the eye drops will stay on the eye long enough to have an impact. Most eye drops are over the counter and reasonably cheap so it's worth trying multiple brands to find what are the most effective and easiest to apply.
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