lacriserts bothering me after a few hours?

[jenny2008]

has anyone on here had trouble with lacriserts bothering them after a few hours of insertion? i used to wear them daily and loved them but lately it seems i do better without them? i am not sure if it is due to outdoor allergans that maybe attach to the lacrisert and than it starts to irritate my eyes? i also notice that even on my 'good' eye days where i am producing enough tears to just use drops once in awhile the lacriserts still bother me after a few hours...

i was just curious if anyone else used to use them and loved them and then all of a sudden had problems with them..
thanks..i appreciate any and all responses!!!!

[RobLIC]

Like Sea Monkeys, Lacriserts need to be watered. If you spritz them with some saline from a preservative-free vial, you may increase your weartime.

[dave25]

If you feel like you're having a good eye day maybe you can see how you feel without them for the day. I don't have much experience with them but the few times a tried them I had to take them out after a few hours as well.

[UTPharmer]

Current Lacrisert User

I use two 5mg lacrisert inserts in each eye daily. I know exactly what you're talking about when you say they can start to feel uncomfortable. The lacriserts are supposed to absorb liquid and then dissolve, leaving a nice layer of hydroxypropylcellulose on your eye--essentially, turning your crappy natural tear film in to the film that an eye drop provides.

Well, I used to LOVE my lacrisert inserts, but then my eyes started getting even dryer...I often find that now, my eyes will get so dry that the lacrisert will start to adhere to my sclera. That's incredibly uncomfortable, and is most likely your problem. The only real solution is that which was already stated--saline application. You've got to keep your eye and your lacrisert moist so that it can dissolve.

Now the real question is, do you still need lacrisert inserts if you're having to once again put just as many eye drops in your eye. I see two sides to this. On the one hand, with the lacrisert is in your eye, the addition of drops would only need to be saline, which is a lot less difficult to see through. On the other hand, you might not want to deal with the discomfort and instead just use a much more viscous eye drop. Of course, you won't see as well after you put those in...

I still use my lacrisert, but dislike them a lot more now. Sometimes, I don't use external drops, and I just move the lacrisert around my lower lid with my finger (on the outside of course). I've setup an appointment for boston sclerals...

It's up to you :-/

[UTPharmer]

on second thought....

Also, you might want to consider putting the insert in right before bed. This will make the insert's lifetime decrease incredibly, but it will feel like heaven for several hours after you wake up.

It does make it really hard to focus on things when it gets too goopy. Also, sometimes the lacrisert dissolving that quickly overflows out of my eye before noon, and it can make my skin at the corners of my eyes start to itch. I'd give it a try if you haven't already.

[jenny2008]

hey there.. thanks for the great response... i know for sure when my eyes are too dry that yes the lacrisert won't melt properly and therefore, just feels sticky. but what i feel that is different now is that even on days where my eyes dont need lacriserts (that is .. i am producing enough tears and along with my plugs...having a good eye day) i have went ahead and tried the lacriserts just to see how thye would feel... and again after a few hours even though my eyes are "over tearing"... they begin to feel uncomfortable...

hmmmm..ok. so i do know that when i am "too dry" that the lacriserts -even with additional drops get sticky and don't melt properly and essentialy don't work.. but I am wondering if allergies from pollen, ragweed, etc could possibly be attaching to the lacriserts when my eyes feel good and then again it is almost like having a dirty contact in the eye. when i take them out at times they look like they have debris on them..filmy...

THANK YOU though for the suggestion to wear them at NIGHT.. Although I do the morning warm compress and massage -i could put them in at night before bed and actually wake with not as dry eyes.. and then they would be melted and i could do the massage.. hmmmm.. i may try one night.. it kinda gets old waking up with extreme dry eyes..

thanks!

[UTPharmer]

Errrmmmm....Did they used to do that?

First, I must ask, is this experience unique to this box of lacrisert. Check the lot number and see if it differs from a previously used box. Compared to an additional box if one is available to see if the lacrisert from that box is causing you the same issues.

Mine don't ever appear to get filmy. As they absorb liquid, they eventually go clear. When I stick the insert in to my lower lid, it starts off as pretty opaque. Then as my tears moisten it over the next few hours, I can see the core still being opaque while the outside of the insert becomes translucent. In about 5-8 hours after insertion, I can no longer see the opaque core, and the whole insert is translucent. At some point in the middle of the day, my inserts (i put two in each eye) actually fuse to form one insert that spans about half of my eye. On really bad days, they do not fuse well. On such days, when I try and manipulate the insert, the bond between the two lacriserts breaks without much force.

Because the Hydroxypropylcellulose becomes translucent when it has absorbed water, you can tell how bad your eyes are doing that day by how clear the insert is. On days when my lacrisert is sticking to my sclera, I can see that it is much more opaque than it should be, despite my adding drops to my eyes, and that is just because there is not a high rate of basal tear production.

As far as getting foreign debris into the insert goes, yes that does happen on occasion. I hate dust that blows around outside because when I was in San Antonio, I got way more than my fair share of it. I normally wash my hands, get a lacrisert applicator ready, pull out the insert, and then pick the dust out with the applicator and then stick it back in my eye. It's not the most sanitary thing in the world, but...those things are $3 a pop!



Also, try adding fluid to your eye, closing your eyes, and pushing the lacrisert around while moving your eye around in circles. You can even try sliding the insert into the area of the upper lid (you're gonna hate gravity if you're not flexible...) for awhile because that area shouldn't be irritated yet. :-p

Let's face it though, we've got inserts in our eyes....My last piece of advice would be to talk to your doctor about other options. I hope things workout for you!

[Aaron77]

Sleeping with lacriserts?

Any success sleeping with lacriserts?

[jenny2008]

ok guys... you will not beieve this--actually UT Pharmer you will.. i checked the lot # on the packaging of the lacriserts--i tried a different box that had a totally different lot # and I have had them in all day!! There is definitely something wrong with the boxes with a certain lot #... I hadn't been able to tolerate them for over a month and it was from 2 different boxes I tried which had the same lot #. I called my pharmacy and they are going to speak with the manufacturer and get back with me on Monday-they are going to replace the 4 boxes I have with the lot # that i cannot tolerate.... I also offered to send the rest of mine in if they wanted to take a look at them..

i would have never of thought to look at that or to try a different lacrisert from a box with a different lot #. Thank you all so much.. especially UT Pharmer.. )) ps.. i haven't tried sleeping with them..if i do i will let you know how that works out. thanks

[UTPharmer]

yeah!

Wow. Now that's some fantastic customer service! The drug company will be the one footing the bill, but I'm glad the pharmacist you worked with had the sense to actually pursue this. I hope you're utilizing an independent (non-chain) pharmacy, but even if you're not, props to the pharmacy for helping you out! :-p

Just to make sure, can you tell me the specific lot# that you found to be defective. I don't want to get that one either!

I've had 2 little aluminum pouches actually come without the pellet inside, but that seemed like more of a possible problem than them formulating the product wrong. You'd think big pharma (or medium size pharma...whatever you consider Aton) would be flawless when it comes to ingredients considering how much technology is utilized to insure the precision...just a tad disconcerting. At least there's no real drug in these things. Heh

[UTPharmer]

Also...

ps.. i haven't tried sleeping with them..if i do i will let you know how that works out. thanks

Well, now that the Lacriserts are working the way they should, I don't recommend sleeping in them. You're going to find that they will dissolve way too quickly and won't last you through the day. I was only recommending that as a viable solution because you couldn't keep them in for more than an hour or two. With your eyes closed, keeping in whatever moisture you are producing, you'll find that they only last 5-6 hours after you wake up...if you're lucky.


I'm using Lot#: 900743u

I think I've been having some of the worst eye days in the past few months this past week or two since I started using my new box, but I don't have anything to compare it to. I just so happened to be moving right in the middle of my refill process, so the old boxes are long gone. I don't think the lacriserts are malfunctioning, but it doesn't hurt to find out what you were using. Thanks!

[jenny2008]

hey there.. i actually had that happen a few times as well where you open the aluminum and there is nothing inside....
the lot # that was causing me discomfort is 807171U

do you have any different boxes you could perhaps try? thank you again for helping me figure this out. i never ina million years would have thought to check that number... i just figured my eyes couldn't tolerate lacriserts anymore and would have to use drops more often. i was quite bumbed.. i am so glad i can still use them...

[UTPharmer]

What do y'all mean you haven't tried sleeping in them?

I just keep spamming this thread...lol

I never take my lacrisert out unless it's there the next morning still. That happens quite frequently, but sometimes, I'll leave the remnants in when I wake up just because it's gone within 2 hours every time. The only time I don't is when what's left over from the previous day is actually a sizeable amount of lacrisert, and that's because, for whatever reason, it dissolves much quicker than a fresh lacrisert and will create so much fluid in my eye that I've actually lose a few of the fresh lacriserts that I'd just put in that morning. The "leftovers" can cause so much fluid it's hard to see or do anything because your eye just keeps overflowing and then it's all up in your lashes...etc.


Or...When you say you haven't tried sleeping in them do you mean that you haven't tried putting them in immediately before bed?

[UTPharmer]

i never ina million years would have thought to check that number...

I'm really glad I could help you! Every time I can help someone, it really makes me feel like I made the right decision in not giving up on pharmacy school.



Ohh, and no, I only have two boxes ATM and they are both the same lot number

[jenny2008]

o wow.. no wonder you knew to look.. pharmacy school.. ok that makes sense..good for you!!!! you will be a great pharmacist...
and to answer your question-i have fallen asleep with them in my eyes but haven't tried to put fresh ones in before bedtime and then going to sleep. i usually put them in in the morning or early afternoon!!!

and thank you again.. i am so pleased to be able to use these again.they really make a difference for someone like me with sjogrens and mgd...