Eyes, watery

[Dave Paprocki]

Excess tearing may cause a sensation of watery eyes or result in tears falling down the cheek. Other symptoms, such as eye irritation or pain, may be present depending on the cause.
Most tears are produced in the tear (lacrimal) glands located above the outer part of the upper eyelid. Tears run across the eye and drain through small openings at the inner corners of the eyelids near the nose (the upper and lower puncta) into a short channel (the canaliculus). They then run into the tear sac and through the nasolacrimal duct into the nose. Blockage anywhere along the tear drainage pathway can lead to a watery eye. Blockage also predisposes to infection of the tear sac (dacryocystitis). Such infection can sometimes spread to tissues around the eye (periorbital cellulitis).