Eye health resource
Pediatric Dry Eye Syndrome: Signs and Solutions
Children can develop dry-eye symptoms too. Learn what signs parents may notice, what can contribute, and when an eye examination is appropriate.
Reviewed for accuracy by Justin Bazan, OD on .
Dry-eye symptoms are not limited to adults. Children can develop burning, grittiness, redness, watering, fluctuating blur, or discomfort—although younger children may describe the problem only as “my eyes bother me” or respond by rubbing or blinking frequently.
Persistent eye rubbing, redness, light sensitivity, complaints of scratchy eyes, fluctuating vision, or difficulty staying comfortable during reading or screen use are reasons to have a child's eyes evaluated. These signs are not specific to dry eye, so the examination also needs to consider allergy, infection, eyelid disease, refractive error, and other causes.
What Is Pediatric Dry Eye?
The tear film protects and lubricates the surface of the eye. Dry-eye disease can develop when there are not enough tears, when tears evaporate too quickly, or when the tear film is unstable or inflamed.
Possible symptoms include:
- burning or stinging
- gritty or scratchy sensation
- eye rubbing or frequent blinking
- redness
- watery eyes
- light sensitivity
- intermittent blurred vision
- difficulty tolerating contact lenses in older children or teens
Why Can Dry Eye Be Hard to Recognize in Children?
A child may not have the vocabulary to describe dryness or fluctuating vision. Parents may instead notice repeated rubbing, avoidance of visual tasks, frequent breaks, squinting, or complaints that the eyes feel “tired.”
Those behaviors can have many explanations. A pediatric eye examination helps determine whether dry eye is actually present and whether another vision or eye-health problem is contributing.
What Can Cause Dry-Eye Symptoms in Kids?
Potential contributors include:
- dry air, fans, heating, or air conditioning
- long periods of concentrated near work or screen use with reduced blinking
- seasonal or environmental allergies
- eyelid inflammation or meibomian-gland dysfunction
- contact-lens wear in older children and teenagers
- certain medications
- less commonly, systemic or autoimmune conditions that affect tear production
A nutritional deficiency can affect eye health in selected circumstances, but routine dietary supplementation should not be presented as the standard treatment for a child with dry-eye symptoms. The cause should be identified first.
Does Screen Time Cause Dry Eye?
Screen use can contribute to symptoms because people tend to blink less completely and less often when concentrating. The screen's ordinary blue light is not the main dry-eye mechanism.
Helpful habits include regular visual breaks, comfortable screen distance, appropriate room lighting, and reminders to blink. If symptoms continue despite those changes, an examination is appropriate.
How Is Pediatric Dry Eye Treated?
Treatment depends on the cause and the child's age and examination findings. Simple measures may include reducing direct airflow, addressing allergy triggers, improving blinking habits, or using an appropriate lubricating drop.
At Park Slope Eye, current dry-eye care may include:
- appropriate over-the-counter artificial tears
- lid-hygiene cleansers
- prescription eye drops when clinically appropriate
- punctal plugs in selected patients
Artificial tears add lubrication; ordinary lubricating tears should not be described as automatically stimulating the child's natural tear production.
What Are Punctal Plugs?
Tears normally drain out of the eye through small openings near the inner corners of the eyelids. A punctal plug partially blocks that drainage pathway so tears remain on the ocular surface longer.
Plugs are not appropriate for every child or every type of dry eye. The doctor considers the cause of the symptoms and the condition of the ocular surface before recommending them.
Does Park Slope Eye Offer Meibomian-Gland Expression?
No. Park Slope Eye does not currently advertise or provide in-office procedural dry-eye treatments such as meibomian-gland expression. If a child needs care beyond the practice's current treatment scope, an appropriate referral can be discussed.
When Should Parents Seek More Urgent Care?
Dry eye usually causes irritation rather than severe pain. Prompt evaluation is important when a child has significant eye pain, marked light sensitivity, a sudden or persistent decrease in vision, substantial discharge, eye trauma, or a very red eye—especially if contact lenses are involved.
Help Your Child Stay Comfortable
Dry-eye symptoms in children are manageable in many cases, but the right treatment depends on what is actually causing the irritation. If your child repeatedly rubs their eyes, complains of burning or grittiness, or has fluctuating visual comfort, book a pediatric eye examination at Park Slope Eye.
Originally published . Substantially updated .