IPL...help!

[moni]

Ok so I had been having good eye days (i completely forgot about them)... I was on tetracycline and had already tried the BSL lenses with no relief. A couple of days ago I had IPL treatment with dr toyos in Memphis. He told me my glands were 90% blocked and tbut was very low, he also informed me I had developed mild rosacea, (which is weird because Im hispanic). Then I proceded to have the IPL, and it was very painful, at least for me , and after that he proceded to express the glands, ouchhh. He told me a lot of junk was coming out, irrigated my punctal plugs out and took me off the antibiotics.

What I dont understand is how my eyes feel worse than before the procedure, I kept expressing them gently at the hotel, I don't know if is because they're sore, but the burning has intensified and I can't see the MG glands in my margin anymore. Im scared I might have damaged my glands by messing around with them. Can anyone with IPL experience let me know how they felt after the first treatment. I dont know if I should go back to antibiotics or the lack of punctal plugs made my eyes hurt again

Help please!

[sazy123]

It sounds like the healing process, i wouldnt worry.

He presses very hard and can make the lids red, but this goes away in a few days, my innerlids were alot redder afterwards but they returned to normal. I didnt get much bennifit though.

[moni]

thanks, is calming now.. I notice an immediate relief with flaxseed oil. When I press on the lids I can see the little bastards now.. they look like this

www.optometric.com/article.aspx?article=71290. ..

My cheeks are still a bit red from the procedure.. I read that ur problem is inflammation? Have u tried an anti-inflammatory diet or xibrom eye drops?

[Gretchen]

Hi Moni -

I think that the "glands" that you were seeing prior to IPL was in fact the impacted and yellowed meibum that were plugging them. IPL and the subsequent extraction would clear that and make the glands "invisible". Unless you are looking through a slit lamp, you should not see your MGs.

As for rosacea, it is a myth that only fair skinned people get it. Even African Americans can get it, it is just not as easily identifiable. My sister-in-law is Mulatto from Cuba and she has terrible, painful rosacea as does her Dad and many of her Aunts and Uncles.

Good luck with the IPL. It has been a miracle for me.

Regards,
Gretchen

[moni]

yup theyre probably the plugged glands! im so glad i can see them though because at first i didnt see anything and i thought they were gone forever.

And the rosacea thing is weird because i have never been able to blush, i always bought makeup to add a bit of color to my face. My family doesnt even believe me because they would always comment how pale i was. I wonder what triggered it so fast, because since it started my body gets a bit red and my hands get really red, warm and start throbbing. Maybe is something thats dilating my blood vessels. I also get hives when i get the redness everywhere so i hope is an allergic reaction or food sensitivity.

I am soo happy the IPL worked out for you girl

[blephasteam]

I would only see Dr. Toyos in Memphis for the IPL treatment. The reason I say this is because I have seen other MDs who have a cosmetic practice and attempt to do IPL for MGD and fail miserably. You are not getting the full treatment if you are not going to see Dr. Toyos, it is just that simple. You can also call his office, I believe he has one physician who he personally trained that practices on the west coast.

Also, I would consider purchasing a pair of Blephasteam goggles. This is not an IPL replacement but an alternative.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=260587818926

[Gretchen]

Dr Toyos is great, but there are other doctors that he has trained that are doing this procedure.

Toyos trained doctors that have the machine and do IPL for dry eye/bleph are:

Dr Yee (Houston TX)
Dr Friedman (Palo Alto CA)
Dr Assil (LA CA)