Xiidra User Reviews & Ratings (Page 4)

• Patient
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• May 4, 2023

For Dry Eye Disease "I have tried using this drug twice now. Each time I lasted no longer than 6-8 months. The first time I began using it my doctor gave me a steroid drop to use to help with the severe burning Xiidra caused upon the first few applications. I didn't notice any major improvements, but things were not getting worse so I kept using it. About 6 months in, I began getting dacryoliths and severe tear duct pain. My eyes became gritty, painful, and irritated (all things this drug was supposed to treat and prevent). My tear duct became blocked and started watering nonstop. I went to three different doctors and no one could figure it out. I was actually told to keep using the Xiidra! After some steroid drops, an antibiotic, and an antibiotic shot at UC, the irritation finally resolved. Fast forward to a year later after trying to restart Xiidra and 6 months in I've experienced the exact same thing all over. I quit for good last night and will be going to the eye doctor next week to try something else."

• SLMH
• September 30, 2017

"Helps dry eye - but generates Terrible long-lasting bitter taste in the mouth, that stays for 4-6 hours or even more) and makes Every food or drink taste bad. I called Shire and they know that this is an effect of the drug - but they have no Idea what causes it or how to counter it. So - we cannot even know for sure that this is not a long-lasting damage to the taste bud or to any other important function. The longest clinical trials were for 12 months. Thus any long-lasting damage is not known. The thought is troublesome and so is that bitter taste."

• Max
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• July 8, 2019

For Dry Eye Disease "I have had dry eye for several years, my eyes feel bruised and are very painful. I've used restasis and xiidra, both burn and can cause excessive watering. I found the workaround for this, 20 minutes after I place the xiidra in my eyes, I use refresh mega in the vial, I flood each eye with about four drops, and then 15 minutes later do it again. I have no excessive watering redness or bad taste."

• KS User
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 19, 2016

"I'm appreciative of an option other Restasis. However, the bitter taste, chronic headache, tightness in chest and cough are very frustrating. It's almost like I have asthma. Would love thoughts on this. I'm now having to use cough medicine to go to sleep."

• Sue
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 8, 2019

For Dry Eye Disease "Xiidra is the worst experience EVER. They make you go through a separate customer service company. Then have you join some "ask iiris" thing. After 17 phone calls to "ask iiris" or Xiidra marketing. 4 trips to the pharmacy and two calls to my optomologist I’ll finish after sample. The medicine burns your eyes and my vision seems worse than before."

• Mimi
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 3, 2021

For Dry Eye Disease "I am very unhappy with Xiidra for these reasons: 1. The silver package is impossible to open and I must use scissors 2. For a senior citizen, the vial is very difficult to open, and squeeze to obtain the drop. Often after removing the plastic top, there is barely any solution to administer, not even enough for 1 eye. I have thrown away many vials in order to administer sufficient solution. 3. After using Xiidra for over 2 months, in addition to the headache, I have an extremely clogged nose or else a very runny nose. 4. The product burns upon administration and causes very itchy eyes lasting all day. I need to supplement with OTC eye drops. I do not recommend this product. Restasis is a considerably better product and far more effective."

• Evie
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• November 10, 2018

For Dry Eye Disease "Horrible drug. I used it for nine months with all the problems it caused other users. I now may have melanoma in my left eye nevia. I will find out for sure about the cancer in two months. Since this is rare, I am thinking it may be due to using Xiidra. It seems to have a lot of terrible side affects. Doctors should stop suggesting it for their patients."

• Soccer...
• March 10, 2017

"I've been on Restasis for several years and have done well on it. My insurer stopped covering Restasis this year, but covers Xiidra. I'm not sure why since they're priced similarly. Restasis is actually a better value because it has .4 ml in every vial (I can stretch out a 90-day supply to 180 days) vs. Xiidra's .2 ml. I decided to try Xiidra. Right away, my eyes burned and itched and are extremely red. I've only been on it for 5 days. I don't know how long I can tolerate the Xiidra. I don't know if I should discontinue using the drops because I suspect I might be allergic to them, or will these side effects subside?"

• Pattyah
• December 12, 2016

"I started using this about two weeks ago then about a week ago started getting bad headaches... mostly at night...now they are continuing during the day! I am going to STOP using them. At first I was noticing a pressure in my head then the headaches began! I was so hoping this would be my answer as Restasis didn't work for me!!! But I can Not deal with the headaches!!! Not worth continuing the drug to have to deal with severe head aches!"

• Bird
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 28, 2019

For Dry Eye Disease "Fabulous. Worked within days. Burning is negligible. A little blurriness after putting in drops. I read on the label - if you press the sides of your nose after putting in drops, the stuff will NOT drip back into your throat and you will NOT have bad taste. The only drag is the price."

• Ckdcox
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 19, 2019

For Dry Eye Disease "Within a day or two of starting Xiidra, I lost my appetite because of the absolutely horrid taste in the back of my throat 24/7. It makes me nauseated and causes heartburn. It makes my eyes feel so much better, though. However, after two weeks, I just can't live with the side effects anymore. I'm quitting! Have a feeling it will take a while for my stomach to get back to normal."

• Jessica
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 17, 2019

For Dry Eye Disease "I actually noticed a positive difference almost immediately and some relief from dry eye, but after only two weeks of taking it I also developed pressure and pain in my ears and a level of nasal congestion that I’ve only ever had with a severe cold and I do not have a cold. My ENT said that he sees this sometimes in patients who take Xiidra. I am discontinuing use. I just wish I could get my $500 back."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 17, 2017

"I've been using Xiidra for over 3 weeks I'm experiencing constant tearing and sticky discharge from just my left eye. Everyday I'm wiping my eye all day long. And it becomes itchy. I couldn't take it anymore and stopped. I have been back to using refresh tears but still experiencing the tearing and discharge. I thought these drops were going to be a miracle. But instead very disappointing!! Luckily I had samples before wasting my money!"

• Tally
• October 27, 2019

For Dry Eye Disease "I was using Xiidra for about 1 month. My eyelashes were falling out extremely. This stopped once I stopped using xiidra. In terms of dryness of my eyes, Xiidra helped a little but Restasis works much better."

• Lady...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 22, 2019

For Dry Eye Disease "A few days after using xiidra I developed diarrhea and now I have acid reflux and a very dry sore throat that has not gone away. It has been 6 weeks since I stopped using it and my food is still coming out just like it went in. I’m seeing a Dr trying to get some answers. Would not recommend xiidra to anyone."

• Kel
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 30, 2019

For Dry Eye Disease "Horrible! Xiidra causes itching around the eye and the burning of the eye is ridiculous! If it eats my skin raw around my eye what is it doing to my eye itself?? It’s amazing how companies can put out such awful drugs. I should just mix something up myself an sell it !!!"

• Gigi
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 22, 2019

For Dry Eye Disease "I have extreme dry eyes and my doctor recommended this. I've used them for 4 months. Unfortunately I'm going to have to stop. I had slight stinging in my eyes and the metallic taste. Now they are giving me migraines. So bad I was vomiting. They worked for the dryness but I can't live with the migraines . I'm so disappointed."

• blond...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 28, 2018

For Dry Eye Disease "I have been on Xiidra for two months. I have chronic dry eye due to hypothyroidism. I use Xiidra twice daily (morning and night). The initial sensation of the stinging is strong and painful and is accompanied by itching. Then I have a lovely white discharge from each eye. After the morning dose, my vision is severely compromised due to blurriness that extends an hour or longer after administering the morning drop as well as continued dry eye symptoms throughout the day. After having used Xiidra for a few weeks, I noticed horrible puffy eyes. I have not used the Xiidra in a few days and already the puffiness has greatly subsided. I will opt for over the counter drops as opposed to Xiidra which didn't do anything but cause my eyes to swell. Hope this helps others experiencing similar symptoms/side effects."

• Mspea...
• May 20, 2021

For Dry Eye Disease "I've had 6 surgeries for a detached retina 3x & cataracts & 2 IOL exchanges. Diagnosis is "central retinal vein occlusion." I get quarterly injections of a med to inhibit VAGF. In 1% of patients receiving this injection a dry eye/iritis condition occurs. The doc put me on steroid drops for the inflammation & Xiidra for dry eye. The literature says to put pressure on the inside corner of the lower eyelid after instilling a drop. This action blocks drops from draining out of the tear ducts & into the sinuses & down the throat, & may prevent sinus, weird taste & throat symptoms. I set a timer for a full 5 minutes Xiidra works miracles in my case! My Medicare covers it with a copay of $490 for a 60 day supply; way too expensive. Novartis has a patient assistance program & I am now receiving my medication from them. You have to meet their financial thresholds, so I recommend you go to their website and download their application."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 13, 2017

"I only used this medication twice. I understand that you usually need to use medication for an extended amount of time to get the full results of it, but I am not able to function with the effects of just two days. I can handle the bad taste. Yes, it is bad, but that can be dealt with. However, after using it I immediately began to feel dizzy and lightheaded. There was a pressure in my head and I felt nauseous. Every time I turned my head, I would feel very disoriented and lightheaded again. I am physically tough and can handle pain and discomfort, but there is no way I can function and work with these conditions. The more reviews I read the more I realize there seems to be way to many dangers than advantages to this medication."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• September 13, 2017

"At least 3 out of every group in the silver packaging..... I CANNOT GET THE LIQUID TO COME OUT!!! At first I thought it was a fluke, but that has been consistent through 5-6 months. Very frustrating. ALSO, there is barely enough, when it does come out, for a drop in each eye. How about changing the tube and adding a little bit more!!!!"

• Mark
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 4, 2019

For Dry Eye Disease "Have been using Xiidra for two months. I noticed a difference after the first day. It can sting a little at first and my vision is a little blurry for about 10 minutes after putting in the drops. I get no metallic taste or other side effects. It works extremely well for me. I’m on a plan through Xiidra where they pay all my co-pay except for $5. A three month supply cost me $15."

• sjg
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 21, 2018

For Dry Eye Disease "I took xiidra last year for dry eyes. It never really helped. Then I developed horrendous reflux and throat issues. Thought those tiny drops wouldn't do that but stopped anyway. It took 6 months for reflux to get under control. Have not had reflux in months. I restarted xiidra about 2 weeks ago and now I am hoarse again and today have horrible reflux. I can say that xiidra now is definitely the cause."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 7, 2019

For Dry Eye Disease "I’m not going to lie, the side effects of Xiidra can be quite unpleasant, but the overall result so far has been great. I have been suffering from dry eye for awhile now and I would put in 6 vials of lubricant in each eye and it was still ineffective, now I don’t really even have to think about other eye drops. The initial burning and bad taste will go away after continued use, you just have to be patient and keep toughing it out and you will likely see improvement within a month. Remember not to skip doses, the burning will return. Overall, I would recommend Xiidra."

• ELano
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 18, 2019

For Dry Eye Disease "I wouldn’t even give Xiidra a 1, it should not be on the market. I tried it, and my eyes have not been the same. It’s as though I was poked in the eye and then sand was thrown in my eyes. I’ve been putting natural tears in every 20 minutes, still no relief. Up all night, very uncomfortable. I’m just hoping they heal soon. Restasis did the same thing. Horrible, don’t put this in your eyes... PS...This was the first time I used this and the last..."