Is this a cure for MGD?

[jjzhao2468]

I WERE DIAGNOSED with MGD and dry eyes in 2002 and saw Dr. Tseng and many other eye doctors.

The only thing That worked for me are antibiotics.

I felt prefectly good for two and half years after I took minocycline 100mg a day for three months in 2007. But it recurs now. Mayber I were not never cured, it returned after two years. Maybe I am never lucky enough.

Any comment?

JAMES ZHAO

[wetEyes]

Be thankful that you felt perfectly good for two and a half years.

[Rebecca Petris]

Sorry to hear you've regressed. The ups and downs of this condition are frustrating and discouraging, aren't they! But, we just have to keep pressing on and when one thing stops working, push in another direction.

I don't think there's any answer to the question "is it curable". There are so many possible causes and everyone's situation is unique. I think I lot of people get things under really good control, and some people get completely symptom free after pinning down and addressing a cause with precision.

[mylittlem]

Cure?

Does anyone really believe there is a "cure" for inflammation and dry eye if one is successful in pinning down the real cause? I spend so much time on the internet searching for that magical cure and all that I read indicates there is no cure. At best the condition is "manageable" and I am not sure exactly what is meant by this comment. Does it mean simply that one finds the condition less painful but can somehow manage to get through their day regardless, but never feels right about their eyes?

I am curious if anyone on this site really feels they have hit upon finding a cure because they have found the true cause. Any insight into this?

MylittleM

[Rebecca Petris]

Stray thoughts on this subject

I think there are cure stories in the Dry Eye Triumphs forum.

It's a struggle common to most members I think: What's the end point? What am I aiming for? And trying to pin that down is really wise because if you don't know what you're aiming for, or if nothing less that complete cure is acceptable, then we're most likely going to continue in frustration.

Here's how I look at it: Make a distinction between expectation (what to aim for and know with reasonable confidence that you can achieve) and possibility (what to hope for beyond that).

So what can you aim for when the end point for individuals varies so much? Break it into increments so that you can always have something achievable to be striving for.

For example...

Maybe Step 1 is getting to a point where it's not consuming all waking thoughts. That might be achieved different ways for different people. For one person that's going to be all about getting the right antidepressant therapy. For another it's going to be about getting the right drop, moisture chamber, drug, sclerals, or whatever is the one thing that predictably, consistently reduces their pain to a manageable level so that they can finally lick the anxiety factor. This is the most difficult step because when things get bad enough it's hard to sort the physical & emotional chickens from the eggs. Everyone who's been through that horrible first year experience knows what I'm talking about.

Maybe Step 2 is specific to a non-vital activity. I want to be able to [read one book a week, jog, etc] again. Present it to your doctor in those terms and it may even help communication.

Maybe Step 3 is a more major activity. I want to be able to [work on the computer without using drops constantly].

And so on.

Guess my point is, when we don't know what's achievable, pick a goal that you know or at least can deduce from the experiences here is achievable. Where will diagnosis fit into that picture? I have no idea. I like to encourage people to keep some mental distinction between medical diagnosis treatment and pain management/coping mechanisms, and to pursue them in parallel. Often these will overlap of course, and a handful of people cannot get any improvement until that one cause is pinned down and addressed but I still think it's helpful to look at them separately. - Much like the fellow who posted in that other thread about wanting to get some lenses to reduce pain while he's pursuing dealing with the bleph/MGD. (I'm not suggesting you all go do that, just giving it as an example of the approach to pain reduction vs. treatment.)

p.s. mylittlem...

At best the condition is "manageable" and I am not sure exactly what is meant by this comment. Does it mean simply that one finds the condition less painful but can somehow manage to get through their day regardless, but never feels right about their eyes?

I think there's a spectrum out there and it depends NOT just on the condition but on the individual and what they're willing to settle for and how much they're willing to invest. Frankly, some people who are clearly 'improveable' accept a certain level of continuous pain because they really couldn't be bothered to take the steps they know will eliminate that pain. And the hassle-factor tolerance among us varies a lot.

'Manageable' outcomes might range from "bearable - I hate this but I can function so I'm moving on with life and I'll ignore it as much as I can" to "I've got my 11-step morning & evening routine that makes me comfortable and most of the day I don't really think about my eyes" to lots of other places. For me, it's something like "eyes feel great during the day except outdoors, Walmart, airports and when the heat's blasting; when I stop taking care of myself my mornings are crummy so I let that happen till it gets bad enough to motivate me to start up my routine again". LOL.

[mylittlem]

Hi R,

Thanks for all of the wonderful information. I do try to differente between what to expect and what to hope for, but I must say that you chose your words to describe this so eloquently. Bravo!!

I must admit that your blurb has made me really ponder and consider what improvement I have experienced. On a plus note the pain has diminished to the point where I can sleep through the night whereas there was a spell where I was sleeping maybe 1-2 hours per night. I truly don't know what kept me functioning at all. I am still too uncomfortable, though, during my waking hours to have any type of meaningful existence at all. I wouldn't call it pain but defintely there is almost constand discomfort. I guess I will take a look at the success stories that you suggest and maybe that will continue to keep me hopeful about what to aim for.

Thanks for your well thought out blurm and words of wisdowm. I truly appreciate hearing this.

MylittleM

[stella]

I think what Rebecca says is great
If you expect a cure you could be extremely dissapointed
I am just sooo relieved that i have got mine "under control"
This means i can live without it interfering with my life
I accept that i will have to do the eyelid hygiene every night and use drops as and when necessary -- but appart from that i mostly dont have to think about it
I just wish everybody on this site could reach that goal