Wishing for Bright Clear Eyes?

Come Try An Exciting Eyedrop

Have you ever been getting dressed and ready in the morning and you look into the mirror and your eyes are red and look like you’ve been out late drinking? Your colleagues are asking if you had a rough night? Popular eye drops like Visine and Clear Eyes that claim to get out the red deliver on the promise–but usually only for a while. Then, they can have a rebound effect, resulting in more redness, which requires more drops... and on the cycle goes. There is a great treatment available now and it’s called Lumify eye drops.

The active ingredient in Lumify is brimonidine, which was first approved by the FDA in a higher dose as a prescription glaucoma drug called Alphagan. Visine's active ingredient is tetrahydrozoline. Both drugs work to reduce eye redness by causing constriction of the blood vessels in the eye, decreasing both blood flow and oxygen getting to the eye's tissue.

Once a person stops using drops containing tetrahydrozoline, the blood vessels are no longer constricted. As vessels open again, they can become even larger than before, as nutrients and oxygen return to the eye. The enlarged arteries pump more blood to make up for lost time, which can cause increased redness in the eyes—called the rebound effect. This can lead to a cycle where people depend on the drops to have clear, white eyes.

The key difference in the way the two drugs work is that Visine targets a receptor in the eye's arteries, while Lumify acts on a receptor in the veins. The arteries carry oxygen-rich blood to the eye, while the veins take blood away from the eye. By targeting the veins, Lumify doesn't interrupt oxygen flow to the eye, reducing the risk of a rebound effect, according to Bausch & Lomb, who makes the drops.

Remember: It’s important to realize that Lumify does not correct the underlying cause the redness. Rather, Lumify will temporarily hide the redness. In many cases, the redness will return within about a day unless you add another drop of Lumify. This isn’t a big deal if your eye is irritated short term; but if you have chronic dry eye or any other inflammation you need to seek care. Further, the drops contain a preservative called benzalkonium chloride, which can cause a irritability in the eye, especially if used frequently.

Just check out this image (Courtesy of B & L)

While Lumify does not require a prescription, and available as OTC, we do keep them in our office. Come see the difference it can make! Call for an appointment 704-821-5009