Punctal plugs may be used to increase the amount of lubrication on the surface of the eyeball by blocking some of the tear-drainage ducts.

Public awareness of the condition is not widespread; in one instance, a passenger was removed from a US Airways flight because of it.

[4] Lagopthalmos can also occur in comatose patients having a decrease in orbicularis tone, in patients having palsy of the facial nerve (seventh cranial nerve), in people with severe exophthalmos and in people with severe skin disorders such as ichthyosis.

This can make the patient look younger, but if too much skin is removed, the appearance is unnatural and lagophthalmos may occur.

[6] The name of the condition derives from the Greek λαγωός (lagoos, 'hare'), referring to the myth that hares sleep with their eyes open.