Artificial Tears/Ocular Lubricant
“This page provides important general information for pet owners whose animals have been prescribed Artificial Tears/Ocular Lubricant during a consultation by Dr Noor.”
Description:
This product is used to replace tears and to help keep the surface of the eye moist.
Other Names for this Medication:
- Genteal®
Common Dosage Forms:
- For animals:
- This may come as eye drops in 3-mL and 10-mL bottles.
- For people:
- Many different artificial tear products can be bought without a prescription. They come in many types, ingredients, and package sizes.
Key Information
- This medicine is used as drops or as an ointment to briefly add moisture to the eyes.
- After you put this medicine in the eye, wait 5 minutes before you put any other eye medicine in.
- Many artificial tear and eye-lubricating products made for people can be purchased without a prescription, and they may use different active ingredients. Only use the exact product your veterinarian told you to use.
- This medicine needs to be put into your animal’s eyes often. Give it as frequently as your veterinarian instructed.
- Use the correct method when giving it so the medicine does not get contaminated. When you are not using it, keep the cap closed tightly.
- Keep it at room temperature. Protect it from moisture and direct light. Do not freeze it. Do not use it if the color looks different or if the liquid becomes cloudy.
How is this medication useful?
Artificial tears and eye lubricants are used to temporarily add moisture to the eyes.
What should I tell my veterinarian to see if this medication can be safely given?
Different factors can change how well this medicine works for your animal. Talk with your veterinarian about the points below so you can make treatment choices together.
- Some medicines can affect each other. Tell your veterinarian and pharmacist about everything your animal receives, including other eye medicines, vitamins, supplements, or herbal products. Include how much you give and when you give each one.
- Tell your veterinarian about any health problems your animal has now, or has had in the past.
- If your animal has had treatment before for the same problem, tell your veterinarian what was used and whether it helped or did not help.
- If your animal is pregnant or nursing, discuss with your veterinarian what risks may come with using this medicine.
- Tell your veterinarian and pharmacist about any side effects your animal has had from medicines in the past. Examples include allergic reactions, not wanting to eat, diarrhea, itching, or hair loss.
How long until I will know if this medication is working, and how long will the effects of this medication last?
- You should expect this medicine to make your animal more comfortable within 1 to 2 hours. After that, the signs you are seeing should lessen.
- This medicine does not last long. Its effect is temporary and will wear off within 24 hours.
When should this medication not be used or be used very carefully?
No medicine is completely safe for every patient. Your veterinarian will talk with you about any special concerns related to using this medicine in your animal.
This medicine SHOULD NOT be used in patients:
- If your animal has any of the issues listed below, speak with your veterinarian about weighing possible risks against possible benefits.
- That have an allergy to this medicine or to similar medicines
What are the side effects of this medication?
Side effects that usually are not serious include:
- If any of the following become severe, get worse, or keep happening, contact your veterinarian.
Side effects that may be serious or indicate a serious problem:
- If you see any of the following, contact your veterinarian right away.
- A mild burning feeling, stinging, irritation, or redness in the eyes.
- Trouble breathing or swelling in the throat (which may show up as loud or noisy breathing) can be a sign of a severe allergic reaction to this medicine.
If my animal gets too much of this medication (an overdose), what should I do?
- When this is used as an eye medicine, giving too much is unlikely. However, side effects could happen if your animal eats the medicine.
- If you see an overdose happen, or you think it may have happened, call your veterinarian or an animal poison control center for guidance.
How should this medication be given?
- To get the expected results, give this medicine exactly the way your veterinarian prescribed it. Read the prescription label so you can confirm you are giving it correctly.
- Put this medicine into your animal’s eye in the exact amount your veterinarian ordered.
- Before you give it, wash your hands.
- To avoid contaminating the medicine, do not touch the tip of the dropper, and do not let the tip touch your animal’s eye or any other surface.
- If some medicine remains on the fur or skin around your animal’s face after dosing, gently clean it away using a damp tissue or cloth.
- If your animal is getting more than one eye medicine, leave 5 minutes between each one before giving the next. Put in eye drops first, and use eye ointments after, so the drops can soak into the eye.
- If you are using this as an eye liquid for a horse, your veterinarian may have placed a special eye catheter (a tube used to deliver medicine), also called a subpalpebral lavage or SPL catheter. Use this catheter only in the way your veterinarian prescribed. After you inject the medicine into the catheter, use only air to flush the medicine through to the eye.
- If you are struggling to give the medicine, or your animal resists the treatment, ask your veterinarian or pharmacist for advice on how to give it and how to make dosing time less stressful.
- This medicine may be used for different lengths of time depending on the situation. Make sure you understand how long your veterinarian wants you to keep giving it.
- You may need prescription refills before the full course of treatment is finished.
- If you want to stop giving this medicine, speak with your veterinarian first, because there may be important reasons to continue.
What should I do if I miss giving a dose of this medication?
- If you forget a dose, give it as soon as you remember. Then go back to the usual schedule.
How should I store this medication?
- Keep this medicine in the original prescription container.
- Store it at room temperature and keep it protected from light.
- If your veterinarian or pharmacist has made a special custom version (a compounded product) for your animal, follow the storage directions and the expiration date that come with that product.
- Store it where children and other animals cannot reach it.
Can handling this medication be hazardous to me, my family, or other animals?
- No special handling steps are needed unless you are allergic to this medicine or to similar medicines.
- After you handle any medicine, wash your hands.
How should I dispose of this medication if I don’t use it all?
- Do not pour this medicine into the toilet or down a sink.
- If your area has a community medicine “take-back” program, use that option.
- If there is no take-back program, combine the medicine with coffee grounds or cat litter so it is unattractive to children and animals and not recognizable to people who might search through trash. Put that mixture into a sealable plastic bag to prevent leaks, and then place it in the regular trash.
- Do not keep leftover medicine to use later, and do not give it to anyone else.
What other information is important for this medication?
- While using this product for your animal, stay in contact with your veterinarian to confirm this remains the best treatment choice for your animal’s condition.
- In some animal competitions, using this medicine may not be permitted. Check the rules before entering your animal in a competition while your animal is receiving this medicine.
- If you have more questions about this medicine, contact your veterinarian or pharmacist.
“Disclaimer: The information on this page is provided as general educational material only. Every animal’s health situation is unique, and treatment decisions must be based on a full veterinary assessment. Always follow the specific instructions given during your consultation, and contact the prescribing veterinarian if you have any concerns.”