Symptoms
Chronic GVHD can affect the surface of your eye and/or the inside of your eyelid and can damage tear glands. Symptoms include:
- tired, gritty, itchy, or burning eyes
- difficulty keeping your eyes open
- sensitivity to bright light or wind
- intermittent blurry vision
- red and swollen eyelids
- crusting on the eyelids
- excessive tears and discharge without much discomfort
Treatment
The treatment for GVHD in the eyes depends on the severity of the symptoms. Most cases can be managed with:
- artificial tear drops or ointments (make sure they are preservative-free)
- steroid drops or ointment
- cyclosporine eye drops
- plugging tear ducts so that moisture remains in your eyes
- adding humidity to your home
- wearing goggles or glasses with gaskets to limit exposure to wind (see 7eye.com or zienaeyewear.com for examples)
If the problem is more severe and is affecting your vision, your doctor may recommend:
- eye drops made from your blood serum (autologous serum drops)
- a bandage contact lens that protects the surface of the eyes, sometimes with an amniotic membrane to promote healing
- a scleral lens, such as the PROSE system offered by BostonSight®, which can relieve symptoms and improve vision
What to Avoid
If you have GVHD in your eyes:
- Do not wear regular contact lenses.
- Avoid rubbing your eyes.
- Use only eye drops that do NOT contain a preservative.
- Do not dig crusted mucous from the corner of your eyes with your fingernails or a tissue. Instead, use warm, wet compresses to soften and remove it. Applying warm compresses for 5-10 minutes at night may help prevent morning crusting.
- Avoid using redness relievers such as Visine®, Opcon A®, Naphon A® or Clear Eyes® which can make dry eyes worse.
- Do not use allergy eye drops such as Alaway® or Zaditor® because they will not treat the root problem.
Take Action!
Tell your doctor immediately about any eye discomfort or vision changes you experience. Prompt treatment may prevent severe damage to the eye.
When in the sun, wear sunglasses with UV protection to protect your eyes from further damage. Use wrap-around sunglasses for added protection.
Take frequent breaks from viewing screens on electronic devices.
Be careful when applying make-up near your eyes, and avoid unnecessary eye surgeries such as cosmetic eyelid surgery and lash extensions.
Ask your transplant team to recommend an ophthalmologist who is familiar with symptoms of ocular GVHD or consult BMT InfoNet’s GVHD Directory for a specialist near you.
.Watch this video about your eyes and chronic GVHD. Click here to read the transcript of this video and download the slides.
(To view this page in Spanish click here.)
Next Page: Mouth and GVHD
Updated December 2024
