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I had the second appointment with my new doctor today. I felt very frustrated leaving the clinic.
He has Phd, specialist in external cornea diseases (“dry eyes” is one of them, but his researches are not about dry eyes). He is very kind and gentle. He answers my questions and listen to everything I say.
I have low schirmer and low TBUT, white eyes, no stain in rose bengal. I have aqueous deficiency and mild MGD he said. My clinical signs are of mild to moderate dry eyes, and I don’t need to worry about the surface health of my eyes. But my symptoms are of severe dry eyes (we all here know what it means).
First appointment: he gave me free samples of two lubricants eye drops (despite I have said all lubricants I tried made me worse), and gave me the options of restasis and plugs.
Of course the free samples didn’t work, like all the others I tried before. I’m trying restasis (one month til now).
Second appointment today.
I told him I have read the article The Corneal Pain System, by Perry Rosenthal, and I tolad him I could saw the description of my problem there. I talked about the Cornea Evaporative Hyperalgesia, about Neuralgia, about my relief in the sun etc. He listened everything, but didn’t make any comments.
He saw my eyes in the slit lamp like he did in the first appointment. My eyes are fine in the slit lamp, more or less as the first time he saw.
I realized he didn’t know what to tell me. He gave me another free sample of another lubricant eye drop. But what left me really frustrated was when he said I should see things through the positive side: I have no erosions, damages, ulcers etc. (I should have replied that the negative side is being dismissed and not being taken seriously by doctors because my eyes surfaces are health). What he meant was: be happy because it could be worse, is all you can do to be better.
But we all know our economic, social, or health condition always could be worse. There is always a worse case.
He said I could be back in some months. But I don’t know if I should.
I know the available treatments in Brazil are warm compress, lid hygiene, lubricants eye drops, restasis, plugs, serum and scleral lenses. I didn’t expect any magic. I know there isn’t a cure, but I expected perhaps some plan to use what is available at least. Is that too much?
I asked him about scleral lenses. He said scleral lenses are like a bandage to the eyes, to avoid the friction of the lid. He said it would cause more clinical signs in me (some damage in conjunctiva tissue). Well, what do you think about? Makes sense what he says? It was like scleral lenses for him was not to be used to lessen the symptoms of dry eyes, even if it did.
My hopes to find a doctor in Brazil that can help me are ending. All help I got and the few things that helped me I have found in this amazing board. None of the seven doctors I went did any thing that have helped me.
What they think is a mere “discomfort” (in their words), we know is something that unable us to work, or to work properly, to have a social life… in few words, we stop living for just surviving.
Maybe I will try another doctor, phd in dry eyes, in other city… I know there is one in Sao Paolo, and people say good things about her.
How can I find a ophtalmologist that doesn't dismisses me because I'm not blind neither have a disease that can make me blind or with bad vision? How can I find a ophtalmologist that cares about me and not merely about my vision?
I don’t know what to do about.
Sorry for the long post
He has Phd, specialist in external cornea diseases (“dry eyes” is one of them, but his researches are not about dry eyes). He is very kind and gentle. He answers my questions and listen to everything I say.
I have low schirmer and low TBUT, white eyes, no stain in rose bengal. I have aqueous deficiency and mild MGD he said. My clinical signs are of mild to moderate dry eyes, and I don’t need to worry about the surface health of my eyes. But my symptoms are of severe dry eyes (we all here know what it means).
First appointment: he gave me free samples of two lubricants eye drops (despite I have said all lubricants I tried made me worse), and gave me the options of restasis and plugs.
Of course the free samples didn’t work, like all the others I tried before. I’m trying restasis (one month til now).
Second appointment today.
I told him I have read the article The Corneal Pain System, by Perry Rosenthal, and I tolad him I could saw the description of my problem there. I talked about the Cornea Evaporative Hyperalgesia, about Neuralgia, about my relief in the sun etc. He listened everything, but didn’t make any comments.
He saw my eyes in the slit lamp like he did in the first appointment. My eyes are fine in the slit lamp, more or less as the first time he saw.
I realized he didn’t know what to tell me. He gave me another free sample of another lubricant eye drop. But what left me really frustrated was when he said I should see things through the positive side: I have no erosions, damages, ulcers etc. (I should have replied that the negative side is being dismissed and not being taken seriously by doctors because my eyes surfaces are health). What he meant was: be happy because it could be worse, is all you can do to be better.
But we all know our economic, social, or health condition always could be worse. There is always a worse case.
He said I could be back in some months. But I don’t know if I should.
I know the available treatments in Brazil are warm compress, lid hygiene, lubricants eye drops, restasis, plugs, serum and scleral lenses. I didn’t expect any magic. I know there isn’t a cure, but I expected perhaps some plan to use what is available at least. Is that too much?
I asked him about scleral lenses. He said scleral lenses are like a bandage to the eyes, to avoid the friction of the lid. He said it would cause more clinical signs in me (some damage in conjunctiva tissue). Well, what do you think about? Makes sense what he says? It was like scleral lenses for him was not to be used to lessen the symptoms of dry eyes, even if it did.
My hopes to find a doctor in Brazil that can help me are ending. All help I got and the few things that helped me I have found in this amazing board. None of the seven doctors I went did any thing that have helped me.
What they think is a mere “discomfort” (in their words), we know is something that unable us to work, or to work properly, to have a social life… in few words, we stop living for just surviving.
Maybe I will try another doctor, phd in dry eyes, in other city… I know there is one in Sao Paolo, and people say good things about her.
How can I find a ophtalmologist that doesn't dismisses me because I'm not blind neither have a disease that can make me blind or with bad vision? How can I find a ophtalmologist that cares about me and not merely about my vision?
I don’t know what to do about.
Sorry for the long post
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