Brolene Eye Drops > Reviews (2)

~~What Brolene Can Be Used For ~~

Brolene can be used to treat mild infections of the eye, such as mild conjunctivitis or blepharitis. It can also be used if you have scratched your eye or irritated it, and it's taking a long time to calm down.

I had never heard of blepharitis before and I doubt that many other people have either! This all changed about 5 years ago. I woke up with that horrible feeling you get when you have an eyelash in your eye. Everytime I blinked I would feel like something was there scratching on the surface of my eye. I tried washing it out, rubbing my eye like crazy, I was pulling out my eyelids and getting someone to see if there was anything that was trapped there… Nothing! My eyes were both extremely red and sore, very irritated indeed.

After it had been there for 24 hours I decided that it was probably something worse than just a simple scratch of my eye, and I popped down to the local chemist to get the pharmacist to have a look. He immediately diagnosed me with blepharitis and told me to buy some Brolene.

~~What is blepharitis?~~

It is basically a condition where your eyelid gets very inflamed and swollen. Once you get it once, it does tend to reoccur quite often, and I suffer with it about once a year or so. The most common symptom of blepharitis is itching, irritation and burning of your eye, along with the feeling that you have something in there that you can't get rid of! It's mainly caused by bacteria entering your eye and causing a mild infection and irritation of your eye.

~~The eye drops~~
Brolene contains the active ingredient propamidine isetionate which is an antibacterial agent. It works by preventing the bacteria causing the infection to grow and spread. The bacteria left over will eventually die or will be killed by your antibodies, therefore removing the infection.

I bought the bottle from boots for £4, it's an over the counter item so you will have to ask the pharmacist for it. The bottle of eye drops lasts for approximately 28 days, so make sure to throw it away after this amount of time.

~~Directions for use~~
It's quite easy to use, especially if you have used eye drops before, it's just common sense. You should wash your hands beforehand, and then simply tip your head back and gently squeeze one to two drops into your eye. Make sure not to let the bottle touch your eyeball, as the infection could spread to the bottle and you could reinfect yourself with each dose!

The typical dosage for this is 4 times a day for 2-3 days or as long as it takes for the infection to go away. You should not use these for over 3 days. If your infection hasn't cleared up in this time then you should go to the doctor and get some antibiotics.

Once you have taken your dosage you should make sure you store the bottle in the fridge. This helps to keep the eye drops fresh… (It also makes them feel nicer if they are really cold, but maybe that's just because I'm weird!)

~~Did it help?~~
I have to say, it really did! My infections of blepharitis always seem to clear up within about 24 hours using them, and I've never had to visit the doctor because of this.

As soon as I get an irritation in my eye, and I can feel that an infection is coming on I nip straight down to the chemists and crisis averted!

~~Side Effects~~
i haven't experienced any side effects whilst using Brolene, but as with all medicines there is always a danger of having an undesirable reaction. The instruction leaflets states that these are rare and that the only reported reaction is a bit of sensitivity or stinging when the drops are applied.

You should seek medical advice if you have any problems with your vision or if your symptoms get worse whilst using the drops.

This product should not be used if you know you are sensitive or allergic to any of the ingredients.

~~Who is it suitable for?~~
If you are pregnant or breastfeeding then you should seek approval from your doctor before using these drops.

If you wear contact lenses then you should note that you cannot wear them whilst you are using Brolene. Having said that, you shouldn't really wear them when you have an eye infection in general as this can aggravate it and make the symptoms worse.

It does sometimes make your eyes a bit blurry when you have applied the drops so if you are planning on driving or operating machinery then you should not do so straight after using the drops.

You should inform your pharmacist if you are taking any other medications as they can advice whether it is safe to take them together.

~~Would I recommend it?~~
I would definitely recommend it! Whilst it is quite a lot of money to spend £4 on something that I will use for 2 days, it helps to clear up the beginnings of my infection without me having to make a trip down to my doctor's surgery. The eye drops are soothing and help with the symptoms immediately, and clear up my problems in no time at all!