Plugs scratching eye

[shells]

Hi Everyone,

I had Eagle Vision lower plugs put in this morning. This is the first time I've had the ones with the little cap on them. She tried two different sizes and then said that she found a good fit and that I shouldn't notice them. Well, initially it just felt a little scratchy against my eye. But it got worse after the numbing drops wore off I think. Both of my eyes are very red and bloodshot in the corners near the plugs and I can feel the plugs scratch when I move my eyes. It seems much worse in the left. I figure that maybe since it is the first day, my eyelids are still a bit swollen or something from being dilated and once the calm down, the plugs won't scratch anymore? Anyway, I'm gonna try to ice them and see if that helps, but at what point should I decide that I need to try different ones? Does it sometimes take a few days for them to get comfortable, or should that happen right away. Thanks!

-Shells

[Rebecca Petris]

Both of my eyes are very red and bloodshot in the corners near the plugs and I can feel the plugs scratch when I move my eyes. It seems much worse in the left.

I had that problem twice with Eagle flexplugs, and also mostly in one eye. First time it was just uncomfortable and scratchy, second time it started pushing out regularly and I had to pat it back down. I think I was just in between sizes - 8 was too small and 9 was too big. I'd give it plenty of time to settle down though, unless it's actually protruding & scratching the sclera or something.

[Lucy]

Shelley, it's not uncommon for this to happen as Rebecca said. You'll have to tough it out for a bit to see if it's going to be tolerable. I can remember looking to back my car up and it felt like toothpicks in the corner of my eyes! I didn't know enough to try ice at the time. As you know, I love ice for my eyeballs.

[shells]

Thanks Rebecca and Lucy! That is good to hear this is common, and I guess I'll just tough it out then. Surprisingly my eyes do feel less dry, but I wonder if some of that may be reflex tearing from the irritation. I'm not sure if the plug is actually rubbing on my sclera or not, but seeing as how red and bloodshot my eyes are, it might be . If they still look and feel this bad on Monday, I'll go back to the doctor to get them checked.

Rebecca - I'm not sure I had the same kind as you. She said that she tried a large first and then a medium, so I don't think the sizes were as detailed. It is good to know there are lots more options out there though if these particular ones don't work. I really want to stick to the ones with the cap, because I'm kinda scared to try the intracanicular ones after reading some bad stories .

Thanks!

[indrep]

Shells,
The plugs are causing the problem. Typically you should not feel the plugs except, like someone mentioned, when your eye is looking nasally. If it is bothering you at rest I would have them removed. There are options for intracanalicular plugs that were not available in the past. A study from a university, I can't remember which now, showed that 40% of puncta are the 0.6 size, 30% 0.5 and 10% 0.7. The remaining were spread out over 0.4, 0.8 and 0.8+. They also noted that 30% of the people had different size puncta from left to right. So measuring and NOT dilating before insertion is critical to the comfort level and retention of the plugs. Good Luck.

[Gaye]

Eagle Flex plugs

Hi Shells, I had Eagle Vision Super Flex plugs put in about a month or so ago and experienced exactly the same thing you are now. I was ready to have them pulled out, but my eye doctor said that they initially irritate the eyes and it just takes some time to settle down. He gave me Acular to help reduce the inflamation and within about 3 days after starting that, they felt fine. Now I don't feel them at all. Good luck!

[shells]

thanks

Thank you everyone for your replies! Gaye - I'm glad to hear that your plugs eventually worked out for you. I'm still dealing with the pain and redness today, so if it's the same tomorrow morning, I think I'll go see my doctor to confirm that it is not scratching my eye too badly and see what she says. Hopefully they will end up settling down for me as well! Have you noticed any improvements in your dryness since you got the plugs?? I really hope that they are helping with that!

-Shells

[neil0502]

Shells,
The plugs are causing the problem.

I've found a lot of wisdom in indrep's posts. Even before that, though, my thought was: err to the conservative. Call the doc and voice your concerns. If it were me, I'd push for a five minute eval in the doc's office. Better safe than sorry.

I can't imagine that there is anything normal about the cap of a plug scratching, rubbing, or even contacting your eye, nor any good that can come of it.

I think we all understand the frustration of ... another call ... another trip on the Beltway, dealing with those unbearably aggressive drivers, another 30 min. in the waiting room, more drops, more cobalt light through the slit lamp, etc., etc., but ... damaging the surface of your eye ... nooo...

All the best,
Neil

[Delilah]

Plugs or suffer?

Hello everyone,
I just read all of the posts on here about the plugs scratching, picking like tooth picks, watery eyes etc.... Now do you all see why I won't get them lol? Never ever, I'd rather be putting a thousand eye drops in a day like I do than to have to deal with all of that pain. The castor oil eye drops are working pretty good, but my eyes are still unable to open in the morning on their own without my help of putting drops in. Strings are still coming out but not as bad, Im still using the Restasis and Im just wondering if this will ever go away? Im use to having this problem now going on 4 years so death isn't an option anymore lol, when it first started happening I seriously was ready to jump in front of a bus But now Im just living with it, trying to do every thing I can to cure myself. For all of you with plugs I truely hope that your symptoms go away and they work for you even though they are the pain in the Well I better be on my way for now. God Bless Ciao D.

[crispen_2000]

Question for Delilah....

Hey Delilah...

How dry are your eyes? What is the clinical evaluation of your schrimmer test and your TBUT?

Just curious...

Trevor

[Gaye]

Hello Shells, The plugs definitely help the dryness in my eyes. I have actually had plugs for over 3 years, but the Eagle Vision were new since my old ones had started to deteriorate. Because they were new, they caused my lower lid to swell some, thus pushing the plugs up and irritating my eyes. Once the swelling went down, the plugs became comfortable and now I don't even notice them. My doctor wants me to get my ducts cauterized to avoid any more problems, but as long as they feel okay and stay in, I am waiting before I have that done.

[shells]

I think we all understand the frustration of ... another call ... another trip on the Beltway, dealing with those unbearably aggressive drivers, another 30 min. in the waiting room, more drops, more cobalt light through the slit lamp, etc., etc.,

Throw in another co-pay and another few hours taken off from work, and you've really hit the nail on the head there, Neil! My eyes have settled down quite a bit from Friday, and it is really only the left eye that is giving me discomfort now and still looks red. So, I went in to see the doctor, and I'm glad I did. He said that I do have an abrasion on my sclera from where the plug is rubbing, but that since things seem to be feeling better since Friday, we will give it a few more days. He gave me an antibiotic drop to take 4x a day and I go back Wednesday morning. If it doesn't look any better by then, they will pull the plug in my left eye. If it does, then I guess I'll keep it. It really does feel much better today than yesterday, so I'm keeping high hopes that it will be calmed down by Wednesday. Thanks everyone!

-Shells

[Lucy]

Good deal, Shelley! I hope it calms down and gives you no further problems.

BTW, my butcher put a plug in today and it was a piece of cake. Feels good now, even a few hours later. (knock wood)

[Delilah]

Eyes are Severly Dry

To answer your question, my schrimmer tests were at a .3, it was horrible, I didn't even wet the paper and when they pulled out the paper it was stuck to my lower lids I put drops in all day and night, preservative free drops and my medicine drops. When I awake in the morning my eyes are so dry they are stuck to my lids and I can't open them normally. So I have to run to the sink and pry them open and put drops in to get them to open, I call this my morning routine. I just didn't think that having to deal with plugs would be a good thing for me, since my doctor is in Salt Lake and its a 2 hour drive from where I live. I'd rather just keep on like I am, although the castor oil eye drops are working pretty good along with the restasis. Laters D

[Lucy]

To Delilah-

Delilah, you know what feels right for you! If your inner voice (ow whatever) is telling you not to do plugs, you shouldn't. Although others may be helped by them, it's not necessary for you to do them too. We all have to use some discretion when it comes to our medical care. You don't need to justify it to others, either.

Sometimes, for a reason, or no reason at all, we just don't feel right doing something. I wish I'd had such thoughts prior to my lasik surgery 6+ plus years ago. So, keep following your intuition! It's your eyes. I just wanted to say that you're just fine feeling the way you do. To plug, or not plug? It's a totally individual choice. I hope the current drops will work for you. There is no guarantee that plugs will work for you in any event!