My doctor told me I have dry macular degeneration, but my eyes are always tearing. Does this mean I actually have wet macular degeneration?
The “dry” refers to the type of macular degeneration, not the state of lubrication of the superficial front part of the eye. Dry macular degeneration defines the characteristics of the macular degeneration. Macular degeneration is a disease of the retina, which is in the back of the eye. Tearing is a result of an abnormality of either tear production or tear drainage, both of which relate to the front of the eye.
Increased tear production can be the result of irritation in the front of the eye, abnormalities of the corneal surface (the cornea is the front clear part of the eye), or even dry eyes. Dry eyes often result in irritation and trigger reflex tearing, which can actually result in increased tearing despite the overall presence of dry eye syndrome.
Normal tearing is controlled by the eye and increases or decreases based upon a feedback mechanism in the eye that responds to the amount of tears that are present. If irritation is not relieved by normal tearing, reflex tearing kicks in and adds additional tears to the surface of the eye to help lubricate it. Unfortunately, reflex tearing is not regulated by a feedback mechanism like normal tearing, and once stimulated, proceeds unchecked, often resulting in over-tearing.
Abnormalities of tear drainage may result from obstructions of the duct that removes tears from the eye, or from abnormalities of lid position. Appropriate lid apposition to the eye is necessary to have normal tear drainage.
All of these problems are related to the front of the eye and have no relation whatsoever to whether a person has dry or wet macular degeneration. If these symptoms are bothersome, contact your ophthalmologist for further evaluation.