Restasis makes eyes worse??

[Faith1989]

The restasis for sure makes my eyes go inflammed. This inflammation is quite painful and makes the eye drier..I just went to see a corneal specialist the other day who told me that "if I wanted to I could stop using it and just use Lotemax, doxy and fish oil...I am getting plugs put in next week also. I have been using it for three months now and I am kinda afraid to stop it. The only reason being, I am scared to be without it because I don't remember how dry they were before. He prescribed serum tears but in Canada there in a two month wait until they can be made.. so I have to decide whether or not to stop restasis and SEE if there is less inflammation on my surface without it...

[Katewest]

Faith- do you have ocular rosacea? If so, be cautious of the plugs. I feel, for me, they made my eyes more irritated and inflamed, thus drier. As for the restasis, I wouldnt worry too much about stopping if it bothers you that much.

[Faith1989]

MeibomianGlandMan.. have u ever tried using restasis? If so, what happened? Its made my eyes look like hell.. lol been on it for three months. The redness is bad, and my flareups have just gotten worse. I have also found it aggrevates my bleph. The specialist I seen said I could try stopping it and see if things clear up.. but I am afraid to stop because I've been on it so long...

[bakunin]

I have learned that castor oil which is one of the main ingredients in restasis is photo toxic to the eye, which means yes your eye will become inflamed, that is why they put cyclosporine in the eye drops, to prevent this inflammation, because its a immune suppressant. Interestingly enough however though is the fact that castor oil despite its inflaming properties, is an essential oil, or just OIL if you will, which helps to lubricate the eye. If My opinion were present at the time those chemists decided to cook up this eye drop I would have chosen to study if another oil like coconut oil or jojoba oil would have been less inflaming. However due to what the investors decided to invest in, this is our only option for now. I hope to further increase the push in the eye care industry to move to study these what we call essential oils, to see which ones are toxic to the eye and which ones are not. However, these studies have not been done yet, If there is a research institute in your area, Make sure to mention this to them that more studies need to be done on the subject. However most studies are financially backed by investors who want to see a profit, let us hope in the future that medical progress is valued over financial gain.

Restasis is Cyclosporine plus Refresh Endure. The castor oil is part of the artificial tear Refresh Endure. Cyclosporine is not on restasis because of castor oil. Cyclosporine is the active part of restasis, and Refresh Endure is the vehicle.

[littlemermaid]

I have learned that castor oil which is one of the main ingredients in restasis is photo toxic to the eye

MGman, I do follow you closely because I think we are reading the same research and treading a similar path - but please put up all your source references as links! I know you are well read. I know this paper - my ophth thinks it's dodgy but I want to chat about it

Cyclosporine is available in various strengths formulated in various bases to control inflammation. It can be compounded if people's eyes don't like the Restasis product. No one is much interested in castor oil, are they? Have you read much about the constituent parts of the tear film?

[MeibomianGlandman]

Castor oil eye drops, I for one have tried these from compounded non preserved, And Yes they cause inflammation to the conjunctiva. One thing I have concluded is that the reason why refresh endura failed is because of that problem, thats why they added the Cyclosporine to fix the problem. Thus preventing inflammation from the castor oil and reducing inflammation in the eye. However, it is unknown what the long term effect of castor oil on the eye and its tissues. It might be good to look into what allergan has done in its studies of the Drug.