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Causes of watery eyes: why are tears flowing? Video
Lachrymation is the discharge of tear fluid from the eye, which moisturizes the eyeball and protects it from the ingress of small foreign particles and pathogenic microorganisms. Normally, this process occurs constantly, but sometimes lacrimation is too profuse and gives a person discomfort.
Causes of watery eyes: why tears flow
How tears form, and why a runny nose begins when crying
Tears are produced by the lacrimal glands located in the upper outer corners of the eye socket and in the mucous membrane of the eyes. Through the lacrimal canal, fluid enters the lacrimal sac and then into the nasal cavity, which explains, for example, the fact that crying is often accompanied by “squelching” and “sniffing” of the nose.
Lysozyme contained in the lacrimal fluid has a bactericidal effect
Lacrimation can be a reflex reaction to:
- strong emotional experience
- pain on impact
- cold action
- irritation of the mucous membrane when eating hot spices or slicing onions
However, in some cases, lacrimation signals various problems.
Sulfur-containing onion gas, volatilizing and getting on the mucous membrane, irritates the eye membrane and causes tears
Why does constant profuse lacrimation occur?
If tears are constantly flowing, it gives some discomfort. By the mechanism of occurrence, profuse lacrimation can be hypersecretory and retention. In the first case, lacrimation is due to excessive production of tear fluid, in the second – a violation of the patency of the lacrimal ducts.
What are the causes of hypersecretory lacrimation
The main causes of hypersecretory lacrimation are, as a rule:
- allergy
- mechanical, light or chemical irritation of the cornea or conjunctiva
- colds (such as acute respiratory infections)
- inflammatory eye diseases (conjunctivitis, keratitis and others)
To eliminate hypersecretory lacrimation, it is necessary first of all to identify the cause that caused the underlying disease and start appropriate treatment
What causes retention lacrimation
Retention lacrimation associated with impaired lacrimation can be caused by:
- inflammation of the lacrimal sac
- narrowing or clogging of the lacrimal canal
- pathology of the nasal mucosa (sinusitis, rhinitis, polyps, mucosal edema)
- violation of the correct position of the eyelids (eversion of the eyelid)
In the case of retention lacrimation, surgical treatment is most often required
Why do old people often have watery eyes?
Lachrymation is a fairly common complaint among the elderly. Age-related decrease in the tone of the eye muscle that lifts the upper eyelid is accompanied by eversion of the eyelid and causes senile blepharoptosis. When trying to wipe a wet eye, a person with blepharoptosis injures the skin and aggravates eversion, which causes increased lacrimation. This is how a vicious circle is formed. With this pathology, physiotherapeutic or surgical treatment is prescribed.