Trouble aiming when using eye drops? Here’s what you can do

Why is aiming eye drops so difficult?

When administering eye drops, you have to do several things at once. You tilt your head back, look up, hold your eye open, position the bottle and then try to get a single drop into your eye.

It is precisely that combination that makes it hard.

On top of that, when you look up you often cannot see exactly where the tip of the eye drop bottle is. As a result, you largely have to rely on feel to judge whether the bottle is positioned correctly above your eye.

A small movement of your hand can then be enough to make the drop land next to your eye.

Missing with eye drops happens regularly

People who struggle with eye drops often notice the same problems:

• the eye drop lands on the cheek;
• the drop lands on the eyelid;
• the bottle is too far from the eye;
• the bottle is too close to the eye;
• you blink at exactly the moment the drop falls;
• you have to try several times before the drop lands properly.

Combining aiming and squeezing is especially tricky. As soon as you apply pressure to the bottle, your hand can shift slightly, changing the position.

Why does an eye drop land next to the eye?

There can be several causes.

The bottle is hard to see

While applying eye drops you look up. That puts the bottle outside your normal field of vision, making it hard to judge exactly where the opening is.

Less steady hands

Trembling hands or reduced fine motor skills can cause the bottle to move while you are dropping.

Reduced vision

When your vision is less sharp, judging distance and position becomes more difficult.

Trouble aiming and squeezing at the same time

The bottle has to stay exactly in place while your fingers apply pressure. That sounds simple, but it takes quite a lot of control.

Fear of touching the eye

Some people deliberately hold the bottle further away from the eye because they are afraid of touching the eye, the lashes or the eyelid. This increases the distance and makes accurate aiming even harder.

What happens if the eye drop misses the eye?

When a drop lands completely next to the eye, it has not reached the eye.

What you should do next depends on the eye medication you use. So always follow the instructions from your doctor or pharmacist and the package leaflet.

Do you regularly doubt whether the drop actually reaches your eye? Discuss this with your pharmacy or treating doctor. They can assess whether your technique is correct and whether an eye drop aid might be suitable.

How can you aim better when using eye drops?

A good starting position helps.

Preferably sit down calmly and make sure you have enough light. Tilt your head back and look up. If needed, gently pull your lower eyelid down slightly to create room for the drop.

Then try to hold the bottle steady above your eye.

The only problem is that this positioning is the hardest part for many people.

If you have to make the same movement every day, an aid can help support that position better.

An eye drop aid for better positioning

There are various aids for people who struggle to apply eye drops on their own.

Some aids are mainly designed to make squeezing the bottle easier. Others support aiming and positioning the eye drop bottle.

A drop glasses aid is designed to keep the bottle in a fixed position relative to the eye.

That means you do not have to determine the bottle’s position entirely freehand.

How can drop glasses help with aiming?

With drop glasses, the suitable eye drop bottle is placed into the glasses.

You then put the glasses on and look up. Because the glasses support the bottle, you no longer have to position it freely above your eye.

That can help especially if you struggle with:

• finding the right position above the eye;
• holding the bottle still;
• aiming and squeezing at the same time;
• judging the distance to the eye;
• applying eye drops independently.

An aid does not take over every action, but it can make one of the hardest parts of applying eye drops easier: aiming.

Applying eye drops independently, with more control

When eye drops regularly land next to the eye, that can be frustrating. Especially if you need eye medication daily or several times a day.

But it does not immediately mean that applying eye drops yourself is impossible.

If aiming the eye drop bottle is the main problem, it can help to support that movement with an aid.

The Oculoo eye drop glasses were developed to make positioning the eye drop bottle easier. The bottle is placed into the glasses, giving you a fixed reference point relative to your eye while dropping.

So you have to aim freehand far less.

Always use eye medication as prescribed by your doctor or pharmacist. An eye drop aid does not change the prescribed medication, dosage or frequency.