One Dry Eye

[dadlewis]

I am 62 and had RK 19 years ago I had a correction of 8 before the RK and have not had any complaints until now. About 5 years ago I was informed I had Hep C that I suspect I got from a Blood Transfusion during a triple bypass. I was placed on Rebitron and Inteferion for 12 months and now am Hep C clear and have been for about 3 years. About 2 years ago I noticed a irritation in my left eye and just thought I must have scratched it or got some sand in it or something. I did not go to the doctor for several weeks feeling sure it would get better. Finally I went to my Family Dr. and he prescribed some drops. It did not work so I went to the Dr that did the RK and she said I had an Infection Inside my Cornea and tried to treat it and finally sent me to a Cornea Specialist. They put me on lots of different meds including PredForte and I am still on Acyclovir and the meds caused Cataract in that eye. Then just as the infection started to clear up Glaucoma developed and they did Glaucoma Surgery then did the Cataract Surgery. They now tell me that I had herpes in my eye and that was the cause of the start. I suspect that it was the Hep C meds that reduced my immune system. Now I have dry eye in that left eye. It feels like the eye is RAW. When I take a shower and water gets in my eyes it feels different in that eye than in the other one. That eye feels RAW or bare when the water gets in it. My Dr put me on liquid tears and it did not seem to help but when I use the PM grease in my eye it does seem to help for a while. My Dr now has put me on Restasis but it burns and the lit in the box says that it has not been tested with people that have Herpes in the eye and sounds like it should not be used for me.
Please suggest help I am getting real feed up with not being able to get it fixed. This has been going on for 3 years now and even caused me to retire early.

[Rebecca Petris]

Dear Roy,

Welcome to The Dry Eye Zone.

I am so sorry to hear about all you've been through with that eye. It is not surprising that with all the conditions, meds and surgeries, you've got some serious dryness issues with it.

The good news is that there are a lot of things to be done to make your eye more comfortable. Artificial tears are only one part (albeit frequently a vital one) of dry eye management. However, even with artificial tears, there are many alternatives to try. There are a great many artificial tear products sold over the counter, and different patients respond differently to different drops, so it may be well worth trying some others. Click here for a list of products. Also have a look through other patients' posts about their experiences here and in the Open Forum.

The next step after artificial tears is often punctal plugs, which might be an option to discuss with your doctor. Next stop after that for many patients is to improve their meibomian gland secretions (that's the oily layer of the tear film that retards evaporation) using vitamin supplements and/or lid therapy and/or prescription medications. Then, there are a myriad other tips and tricks as well as some further medications which can help. For a user-friendly overview of dry eye treatments, click here.

Finally, for general background to better understand dry eye and how it can be managed, have a look through Dry Eye FAQ.

Or if all that just sounds too overwhelming (and I know dry eye can make computer screens very hard on the eyes...) just keep posting here and we'll see whether & how we can help. There are a lot of people going through what you're going through and we all help each other by sharing tips and experiences.

Regards,