Humidifier, punctal plugs & corenal specialist?

[portrgirl]

I just got back from another follow-up appointment with my eye doctor. My eyes are still dry, although somewhat improved, after Lotemax, two months of Restasis, Dwelle, and trying all of the home treatments recommended here.

My doctor put temporary plugs in my lower ducts and will put in permanent ones next Monday if I find that they help. If they don't help, I'll see a corneal specialist instead on Monday. This makes me nervous. I don't like the idea of putting some foreign object into my body, even if it does help me. Also, the cost involved with getting the permanent plugs makes me nervous. Yet, I don't feel like my eyes are dry enough to warrant seeing a corneal specialist.

I also just bought a humidifier to use at work -- which is still what I think is the cause of my dry eye since it started after we moved buildings a year ago; others here have also commented on the dryness of the building. However, now that I have the temp. plugs in, I'm not sure if I should try using the humidifier to avoid confusing what is actually helping my eyes. Also, my doctor told me that he hasn't yet had a patient significantly helped by a humidifier.

So I'm back to being frustrated, confused and upset about all of this. Any advice or comments would be much appreciated.

[cleareyed]

Hang in there !

Hi portrgirl,

I just wanted to offer some feedback to you from another DEZ-newbie, 32 years of age. I have dry eyes which have caused corneal erosions for the past 8 months. Prior to that I simply had dry eye but didn't need to do anything, or better said, did not want to do anything cause it didn't affect me enough. I could not wear contacts as they fell out so I have been in glasses since age 7.

But I have been on Restasis for 5 months and I have only recently felt much better, in the past 4 weeks. The first 3 months I really thought it was overpriced crap. But now I have no symptoms of dry eye. It could be the Restasis took that long, my Doc says it takes up to 6 months to set in with an impact. But also, I have a strict daily drop routine and tried other things I now do routinely: 1) drink lots of water all day, and sometimes I throw in a Gatorade G2, I love that stuff. G2 is a hydrator for non-exercise time periods, has half the sugar and calories of regular Gatorade. I also drink at least 20 ounces of water before bedtime. 2) take some supplements for eye health, such as Omega 3 fish oils, flaxseed oil, and/or a B complex vitamin. I don't take these daily but about once every two days with a meal. 3) I clean my eyes/lids out multiple times per day. I don't know if this removes oil or just makes my eyes feel better.

My Daily routine, both eyes:
- Restasis - twice daily, usually morning and 8pm
- Drink water - all day, especially before bedtime
- Theretears or Systane Ultra artificial tears, preservative-free vials - anytime, about onece every 3-4hours
- Omega 3 Fish oil, Flaxseed oil, B Vitamin - every other day
- Genteal Gel Plus - at bedtime, so the lids and cornea surface don't dry out and attach, causing an erosion

So, those are some tips you can try. We also moved in to a different house around the time my symptoms appeared 8 months ago but we determined the house was more humid than the previous. We never tried a humidifier due to that.

Good luck !

[LasikLady]

Plugs

Punctal plugs are the single most helpful thing that I've tried. Don't be afraid of them. I have 4 permanent plugs in made of silicone and I don't even feel them in there. I do have some over tearing but that is better than a dry, painful eye. They may not cure all your symptoms but they sure can make a big, big difference. The "permanent" ones blocked more tears for me than the temporary ones so keep that in mind too.
Good luck with your plugs!

[portrgirl]

cleareyed: Your findings about Restasis taking longer to finally kick in is something I'm wondering (and of course didn't think of when I was still at the doctor's office). He had told me that I would likely be on it for 6 months. It's only been two. I feel that maybe plugs are a bit too premature? Great suggestions, too. I do much of the same: around 90 oz of water a day, fish oil capsules and multivitamin daily, Restasis morning and night, Dwelle or other preservative free vial drops throughout the day, and up until recently Genteal Gel at night (I now use Dwelle, but am considering going back to Genteal for nights). I could be more diligent in using drops throughout the day though, especially because my work is done mainly on a computer.

LasikLady: I don't know why I am, but I am scared of plugs. The cost, the severity of the procedure. I just wonder if it's a bit premature for me. I've had other dry eye periods like this one that ended up healing eventually. I don't like the idea of relying on something this costly and surgical to help my eyes for the rest of my life.

[LasikLady]

Usually insurance will cover the plugs. It's not really a "surgical" procedure. They just insert the plugs and it takes seconds. The ones on the bottom usually have caps and can be easily removed if you don't like them. For most people they aren't really a big deal at all.
If you feel it's too soon then you can always keep this option in your back pocket for a later time if needed. When you really need them you'll probably know!! I would just like to encourage you not to be too overly concerned with them. It takes seconds to put them in and is painless.
Hang in there!!

[gz9gjg]

Hello portrgirl,

Have you considered using moisture chamber glasses, especially for outdoor? Retaining a moist environment around my eyes helps me a lot.

Good luck,

Lynne

[portrgirl]

gz9gjg: I wear prescription glasses to see. Would moisture chamber glasses work with those?

[cleareyed]

I would think you need at least 4 months on Restasis before you make any subjective decision on its effectiveness.

Plugs? I do not know anything about them, or what they are even designed to do. I am of no help with the plugs subject.

I would tend to agree that you should try the Doc's suggestion through its full term before deciding on another path or alternate treatment. One thing I have discovered, and had a hard time understanding at first, is that there is no fast cure-all for dry eye symptoms. My eyes have served me well for 32 years, that's 32 years of use and abuse. So it may take some time for the molecular balance and healing to begin and take hold. That is strictly my opinion for my eyes. Your mileage may (and will) vary.

The best thing I did was mentally stop pursuing the 'One' Drop, or the simple quick solution. Once I stopped pushing myself toward that Ultimate unknown solution, I realized that I may have to relax and just do exactly what the doc told me to do and withhold judgment until the period he prescribed had expired. Thankfully, I am two weeks now erosion free and feeling great. Disciplined in my eye routine but feeling pain-free and normal again.

[Jen72]

I have not really noticed a difference with using a humidifier at night. I dont think that using one in your office would hurt though. As far as the plugs go, if you dont like them they are easily removed. Are the temporary plugs helping?

[portrgirl]

Jen72: I just got the temporary plugs placed in this morning. My doc said it would take until tomorrow evening before they expanded enough for me to possibly see a difference. So this Wed through Fri are the days I'm suppose to really pay attention to determine if they're helping. Regarding the humidifier? It's running right next to me right now and so far the only thing I can tell it's doing is making me cold (it's a cool mist).

cleareyed: That's such good advice. I find that with the Internet and sites like this I can get caught up with self diagnosing and thinking I know better than the doctor. You're right. Relaxing and trusting an educated, medical, eye specialist professional who has treated many DES patients is what I need to do (while providing myself with the basic information to not be a completely uninformed patient).

[rubyslippers]

I had temp plugs put in both my lowers this spring. I had immediate improvement and so when they dissolved 60 days later, I had perms put in those and a temp in the top of the worst eye. I could see immediate difference so had a perm put in that eye just days later rather than wait for the temp to dissolve. It helped significantly and I have had no problems. My doctor said he has rarely had anyone have them come out, with the exception of one patient who has rejected several times. She will have her ducts burned closed.

I am helped by a humidifier too. If I forget to turn mine on at work, I will be miserable within about 30 minutes of getting to work. I run one at home too.

[portrgirl]

Just thought I'd follow up my whole thread. The plugs did nothing for me. Nada, zip. As did the humidifier at work. I took it home to try in my bedroom and did notice maybe a slight improvement, but I have to give it a bit more time to really see if it's helping.

[bassfan]

As did the humidifier at work. I took it home to try in my bedroom and did notice maybe a slight improvement, but I have to give it a bit more time to really see if it's helping.

My experience with the humidifier is that if you're in an office setting, theres too much dissipation of the "humidified" air to really do much for you. I used to have one but decided the same thing as you.

Daren