New Restasis user

[goba]

Hello everyone, I have been watching and reading all the tips on DEZ for nine months. I had Lasik surgery on Jan 27the 2006. My question is about restasis. I have had dry eye, but have kept it under control I thought until a few days ago. Well, my doctor put me on restasis to try. I used it this morning and my eyes have burned all day. Is this something that will get better, or am I adding insult to injury. I was down to using drops about three times a day, and then things got bad about five days ago. I hadn't had bad burning for about two months. I do have blepharitis too. Do the lid scrubs etc. Anyway, it doesn't make me want to put them in too bad tonight. Thanks for any advice. Goba

[bostonlover]

Hi, Goba!

I think I may have seen you post before on the Healthboards too. I also started Restasis 2 weeks ago. I haven't had any more problems with burning than I normally do, but my Dr. had me do Lotemax 4 times daily for 2 weeks before I started Restasis and then I went to doing Lotemax twice daily when I started Restasis. As of yesterday I am no longer doing Lotemax. Did you Dr. do this for you? If not I have done quite a bit of research online and it sounds like a protecol more and more doctors are doing to cut down on the inflammation enough for the patient to be able to handle the Restasis better. So far since starting all of this a month ago I feel I am definitely doing better. I have less time of discomfort overall than before I think. I still have plenty of discomfort but I seem to be able to get through more of my day before it starts than I did before.

Tera

BTW, I am almost exaclty 6 months post lasik now.

[kitty]

From what I have read, many people find that the burning they experience with Restasis gets more tolerable as they adjust to the medication. In other words, it may lessen over time. For others, like myself, the burning is unbearable and never lessens. I got to the point where I would rather experience the burn of the DES than the burn of the Restasis. It is hard to use something that is making you feel worse rather than better. I would suggest you keep pain diary of your DES, including when you instill Restasis and how your eyes feel afterward, and for how long, as well as any other Restasis side effects you experience. For me, I had a hypersensitivity to the Restasis and found my eyes feeling progressively worse rather than better using the stuff. Your doctor will find this information very helpful. One hint I do have, is to put eye drops in 15 minutes before and 15 minutes after using Restasis. My eye doctor said that by doing this, you create a cushion so that your poor dry eye does not take a direct hit by the Restasis. Please discuss this with your doctor and see what he/she says. Good luck to you!

[Flick]

Hey Goba,

When I started using Restasis it felt fine in my right eye, but my left eye was a totally different story - some burning and lots of redness that often lasted several days. So I only used it in my right eye until a few months later, when I accidentally put it in my left eye with no ill effect. I've used it in both ever since. I think my left eye was more moist by then (I was on a few other treatments).

Moral of the story - if Restasis doesn't work for you now, maybe try it again after a few months have gone by and you've (hopefully) improved your ocular surface some using other treatments or lots of drops.

Good luck!

[goba]

new restasis use

Thanks for all the info. I'm going to the eye doctor on Monday and see what he thinks. So until then I quit using it. I like everybody else am just hoping to cut back on the use of artificial tears. It was so wierd that I was doing so well until about five days ago. The only thing that I know that I changed was the brand of my flaxseed oil. I don't know, maybe stranger things have happened. So, I'm going to go back to my old one and see. Thanks again. Goba

[Frosty's Mom]

I use Systane-free artificial tears fifteen minutes before using Restasis in the evening and fifteen minutes after using them in the morning. I had some burning initially but rarely notice any now. Although I started having problems with dry eye in January, I didn't start using Restasis until April. I am doing much better now -- even wearing my Acuvue Oasys contact lenses 12-15 hours per day. It took a few months before I noticed much of a difference, but I am doing significantly better. I credit the improvement to Restasis.

[brulsy]

FreshKote...

Goba,

You may want to look into using FreshKote if you experience uncomfortable burning with Restasis. It's a 3 in 1 drop that has been gaining in popularity due to an efficacy rate of around 80% and it is much cheaper. FreshKote has a lipid component(Soothe), a mucomimetic(Systane), and an oncotic pressure high enough to heal your epithelium(Extremely weak Muro 128). You can get a sample directly from this site I believe, or just ask your doctor for a prescription. Best of Luck finding the solution for you! www.freshkote.com