Vita-POS Eye Ointment 5g

✔ Stock on hand — ships NZ-wide from Rose Optometry, Hamilton.

Vita-POS — a preservative-free night ointment with vitamin A

Vita-POS is a night-time lubricating eye ointment containing retinol palmitate (vitamin A), supplied preservative-free. That last detail is the reason most people end up choosing it.

Like any ointment, it stays on the eye for hours instead of minutes, which makes it the right tool for symptoms that are worst on waking, and for eyes that do not close fully overnight. Where it differs from a plain paraffin ointment is the absence of preservative and the presence of vitamin A, which has a recognised role in maintaining the health of the corneal and conjunctival surface. If you are using an ointment nightly and indefinitely, or preservatives irritate you, this is the sensible version to be on.

The honest caveat, twice over. First, it blurs your vision — bedtime only. Do not use it and then drive, read or work. Second, the vitamin A supports the ocular surface but it is not a cure for dry eye, and we would rather say so plainly than let anyone buy it on the strength of the word "vitamin". If your eyes need a nightly ointment, the ointment is managing a symptom; the cause is still worth investigating — usually the oil glands in the lid margin, which respond to heat and lid hygiene rather than more lubricant.

Who it's for

• Nightly, long-term ointment users who want no preservative.
• Sensitive or reactive ocular surfaces.
• Waking with gritty, stuck or sore eyes.
• Incomplete lid closure overnight (nocturnal lagophthalmos), on our advice.
• Not a daytime product, and not for use before driving.

Questions we get asked

How long will my vision be blurry?
Several minutes. That is unavoidable with any ointment and is exactly why it goes in last thing at night.

Can I use it with contact lenses in?
No — take your lenses out first, and leave them out overnight unless we have fitted you specifically for overnight wear.

How often can I use it?
Follow what we have advised you. For exposure and incomplete lid closure, that is usually nightly. Others use it only during flare-ups.

Does it contain a preservative?
No — it is preservative-free, which is its main advantage over a standard paraffin ointment. The rule generally: if you are dosing more than about four times a day, move to preservative-free.

How long does it keep once opened?
Follow the discard-after-opening period printed on the pack, and write the date you opened it on the tube.

Vita-POS or Poly Visc?
Poly Visc is a straightforward paraffin lubricant — effective, widely used, usually cheaper. Vita-POS is preservative-free with vitamin A, which suits indefinite nightly use and sensitive eyes. Both blur; neither is a daytime drop.

Not had a dry eye assessment? Start there. Dry eye, blepharitis, demodex and meibomian gland dysfunction look alike from the outside and are treated completely differently — see our dry eye guide and our lid hygiene range, or Book a free Dry Eye Evaluation in Hamilton, 15 minutes at no cost.

Why buy from Rose Optometry

• Independent, optometrist-owned New Zealand practice — in Hamilton since 1969.
• Free optometrist advice with every order; reply to your order email and a clinician answers.
• Free NZ shipping on orders over $100, sent from Hamilton.