Spring Allergy Season & Your Eyes

Across the country, warmer weather is coming. Though this is often a welcomed change, the spring is also synonymous with irritating allergy symptoms for millions of Americans. If you are considering eye surgery, like LASIK or cataract surgery, find out what allergy season means for you below!

Allergies and your eyes

For Ohioans, spring allergy season can be particularly rough. A report found that Ohio is the worst state in the country for allergies and asthma. And, unfortunately for our patients, Columbus ranked as the 34th worst city.

During the spring, this means that you may be dealing with uncomfortable allergy symptoms, like sneezing and congestion, as well as eye allergy symptoms, like dry eye; itchy, watery eyes; and red eyes. These allergy symptoms can temporarily blur vision, derail your days, and may even impact your future eye surgery plans.

Eye surgery and the allergy season

If you know that you are interested in LASIK or cataract surgery and suffer from springtime eye allergies, thinking ahead could help you enjoy a more comfortable allergy season. Since the spring is not yet in bloom, choosing surgery now can be a smart idea.

Enjoy the spring—with fewer symptoms!

The American Optometric Association reports that up to 75% of contact-wearing patients complain of allergy-related eye irritation. Since contacts can trap allergens and worsen irritation, patients may want to stop wearing contacts, switch to glasses, or practice better contact lens hygiene during peak allergy season. Even with proper contact lens hygiene, pollen can stick to contacts and irritate your eyes. However, without contact lenses, your eyes can more easily wash or blink away irritants with tears. By choosing LASIK before the spring sets in, you can cut out contacts, minimize touching your eyes, and potentially reduce the severity of your eye allergy symptoms.

And, for all patients who are trying to avoid eye allergens, always wear sunglasses when you are outside. These not only protect your eyes from UV rays (which is especially important after surgery), but they also block irritants from getting into your eyes. The best kind is a pair of wraparound sunglasses—the larger the better!

Book your appointment today!

Don’t let springtime allergies derail your vision goals. Whether you choose to book a surgery now or later, be sure to talk to our team about any allergies that you have and any prescription or over-the-counter allergy medications that you may take. If you have any questions or want to book a consultation today, give our Columbus Laser and Cataract Center team a call at 614-939-1600.