Restasis

Restasis is the first and only Food and Drug Administration approved medication that treats the cause of dry eyes, not just the symptoms. This medication has some mild possible side effects. You will notice at first glance that the drop will have a slight milky tint, but this will not blur your vision.

When you first use Restasis, you may feel a little burning upon application. The burning should go away within a couple of weeks, at most. A small percentage of patients develop burning three to six weeks after starting the medication, as the eye returns to a more healthy and normal state. It will also go away after a couple of weeks and not develop again.

Your pharmacist and the patient booklet suggest using two vials per day, but the following instructions are the unanimous consensus of many leading dry eye and Restasis experts. This regimen will save you 50% of the cost of this medication.

Instead of using two vials per day, you can use only one vial for up to three doses if you are very careful and detailed-oriented. Snap the neck off of the little dose vial and put the drops in your eyes in the morning. Do not insert contact lenses or instill any other eye drops (even artificial tears) for at least 30 minutes.
Lean the vial up against the side of a glass and put it in the refrigerator. It’s imperative that you keep the tip clean and the vial cold to avoid bacterial reproduction, as the medication is unpreserved.
In the evening and the following morning, remove the same vial from the refrigerator, put the drops in both eyes, and discard the vial after 24 hours. This means that you’re using only one vial for up to 3 doses instead of one dose.
Your eyes should feel better every day. It takes up to three to six months; however, to derive the maximum therapeutic benefit, so you may be patient.
It is imperative that you continue to use the drops long-term or the dry eye condition will return.