How long before you noticed results on Restasis?

[Jen72]

Just curious. I have been on it about 9 weeks with no change, actually worse lately.

How long was it before YOU noticed results on Restasis?

[alisonW]

Hi there...

It took me a full 6 months before I noticed a positive change. I used it for 2 years and then it seemed not to be helping anymore so I stopped using it. Hth!

[Jen72]

I am wondering if I should stay on Restasis? Its been almost 3 mos. with no major change. Do more tears happen overnight or is it gradual? My plugs are helping reserve the tears, so how will I know if the Restasis is working?

[Blueyes]

I noticed a huge difference after 3-4 days. My doctor said that it is unusual. Now, 9 months later, it does not seem to help as much as it used to.

[Plat]

Supposed to take a minimum of 3 to 6 months. Although it can take up to 9 to see a difference.

[odydnas]

9 months in, my left eye now feels moisturized after I put in Restasis in the morning. I feel like I'm making more tears or something in my left eye for a couple hours.

I've heard it can take up to 14 months to feel a difference, and it only works for 50% of its patients.

[jenny2008]

For what it's worth, I used Restasis for about 7 months last year-got off of it without telling my doc-about a month later my eyes got a lot worse. So, after relocating to a new state-I found a new doc-actually, I went to numerous doctors who all said I had to get back on it. I have been back on it for 9 months-I still have my bad days and good days (I have sjogrens) but I have to say that overall my tear break up is better and my new doc said that it can take up to 14 months for Restasis' full effects. Also, he said that it helps with the inflammatory cells--that alone I need.

I do notice after inserting Restasis, I feel it very refreshing and it seems that I make more tears for a few hours-whether this is the case or if it is simply soothing to the inflammatory cells I do not know. I just know that I look forward to using it cause I feel so much better afterward. I am going to stay on it-Sometimes I wonder if I wouldn't have taken a few months off if I would be doing a little bit better than I am now.

Once you stop taking it for a bit and start over-it's like completely starting over as it works on different t-cells.. something like that--ask your doctors to explain it!

Thanks... Just wanted to give my input...And to let everyone know if it doesn't bother you using it-keep on it per your doc's instructions. It can't hurt ---

It took me about 7 months to feel a small amount of difference..just and FYI

[Teri]

My 2 cents

It was so gradual, I'm not sure how long it took. I know that within 4 months, I had more tears than I had before. My eyes didn't exactly feel more moist, but I could produce tears.

Pre-Restasis, I was incapable of crying. I would weep and sob and no tears would come out. After a couple of months on Restasis, I noticed that I had some tears running down my cheeks, and now (on it for 18 months) I produce loads and loads of tears when I cry.

My doctor gave me Lotemax to use 10 minutes before I use Restasis, as an extra anti-inflammatory boost and to make the Restasis more comfortable (it stings when I use it alone). This was effective for me.

[Jen72]

thanks for the replies. It sounds like its definitely not a quick fix, hopefully it does not take 14 mos!. I finally met my deductible on my ins. so at least the Restasis will be a little more affordable.

Teri- I have Lotemax too but that was for a recent edema due to dryness (plugs came out). Did you have inflamation as well or was the Lotemax given as a boost for the Restasis? Maybe I will try them 10 min apart, Lotemax first right?

[Teri]

Re: Lotemax, my doctor just said it would lower the inflammation and would help the Restasis not sting. I think it was a contributing factor to the dryness improving, though.

Yes, I used it 10 minutes before the Restasis.

Good luck! I really hope Restasis works for you.

[josephine]

Restasis Working

I have been on Restasis for about 4 months. It is working for me. I didn't have great hopes as my eye doctor told me he usually sees success in only 1 in 4 patients. So I was so relieved to be helped by it. I was in misery before using it. My eyes were stuck shut every morning. Even after a brief nap they were stuck shut. It was scarey. So for now, things are good.

[mgd]

working after 2 months- 3rd try

This is my third try using Restasis. My eyes were so uncomfortably dry I had to try something. I have plugs in my lower eyelids. I keep the Restasis in the refrigerator which helps with the stinging, headaches, burning. It has now been 2 months and the stinging is gone and I'm starting to see some more tear production. I'll check back in in another month or so. My eyes are still red but not as red in the eveing as they were.

[rooneyandfergie]

Hey Jen,

I can relate my experience to you. My case is a bit more complicated. I started on Restasis back in Aug or Sep last year and used it for 3 months. If I don't recall wrongly, my Schirmer test before using Restasis was 3 or 4 for the left and 8 or 9 for the right. I didn't really experience any major side effects with Restasis. It seemed to soothe my eyes initially when i put it in. However, there were times after i put in Restasis that my ears would feel really warm and get really red. In the office, my eyes still felt horrible especially with computer use. This was so even after taking breaks from the pc and using plenty of drops.

My eye doctor then prescribed me compounded cyclosporine. If I am not mistaken, think the concentration is 0.5% which i took 4 times a day. It stung like hell when i put it in and turned my eyes pretty red. Sometimes the redness would subside after a while. After I was on it for about 3-4 weeks, my eyes started to feel better. I mean the eyes still felt like crap and were red especially in the office environment but at least they were more tolerable. In addition, the occasional twitching of my eyes also subsided.

I then stopped using cyclosporine for 4-5 days and switched over to Restasis instead and even went cold turkey (stopped using anything) for 1-2 days. I don't know whether it's psychological but i certainly felt a worsening of my dry eye symptoms. I recently restarted using it at the start of the year. My eyes felt worse, pretty bone dry and red in the beginning but as time went by (now about 2 weeks), my eyes started feeling a bit better again. I recently went for my schirmer test again and it was 9 on both sides. I know the test could produce inaccurate results though.

To answer your question, this is my take on it. Firstly, the concentration of cyclosporine and frequency of use must be high enough to match the severity of your dry eye. If it is high enough, I feel you should be able to feel at least a slight difference in 2-3 weeks. But a more conservative estimate would be 3 months. And the results should peak in 6 months as i understand. If you don't feel much of a difference after 3 months, you really should go back to your doctor to ask if you should increase the frequency or concentration. Hope this sheds some light on the issue.

[patientpatrick]

i have a question. I was told that Restasis is only active for about 12 hours. Using it more frequently or in a larger dosage (like 2 drops) does not change its effectiveness. I just wanted to check with everyone since it seems to be very debatable.

[Guest]

It is not true that using it more frequently would not change it's effectiveness... increased efficacy has been seen with dosing of 3-4 times daily compared to the usual twice daily. Upping the dosing frequency is like increasing your dosage, hence why it works better. Similarly, people have seen better efficacy with an increased concentration of cyclosporine eye drops.

Why didn't the manufacturer just make Restasis in a higher concentration? or recommend a more frequent dosing routine? I suspect it's because if Restasis is used only twice daily, it is pretty much undetectable in your blood stream. Why would we care about that? Well, if the active ingredient in Restasis (cyclosporine) is taken by mouth (= lots on the blood stream), it is associated with a rather nasty list of systemic side effects... I imagine that knowing this, the manufacturer didn't want a med used for something as benign-sounding as "dry eye" to be likely to cause cancer and a host of other serious things... the twice daily dosing is much "safer" in theory. (You can look on-line for prescribing information on Neoral (oral cyclosporine) and you'll see what I mean under the "adverse effects" section... it's nasty stuff, and one wouldn't want a bunch of that in one's blood stream if one had other options)

As for 2 drops at a time vs 1, if you were to use 2 drops, 1 right after the other, the 2nd drop would simply be rinsing out the first - so no increased efficacy. However, if one were to use 1 drop, wait 15 minutes, then use the 2nd, perhaps that might help more than 1 drop at a time... but I haven't seen any studies specifically checking this.

Restasis works by inhibiting the activation of inflammatory t-cells - once activated by your body, these t-cells "live" for about a month - Restasis doesn't do anything for the t-cells already activated, only helps to prevent the activation of NEW ones... hence the reason why it can take as long as a month to notice any difference.