meibomian glands - finding a doc to express them?

[Guest]

Any tips/advice on this?

I'd like to start the process of looking for someone who can express them if needed.... someone who will be able to assess accurately whether or not they would even benefit from that in the first place...

But I must say, phoning every optometrist in the yellow pages is a bit daunting... geez... I left msg. for the optometrist I saw last summer to see if he does it... I suspect not, especially since the optician that took the message had never heard of that procedure before

I know names of some docs (via this forum) that do it... but it seems ludicrous that I should have to fly out of the country to find someone to do this when my city has a gazillion optomotrists and a pile of ophthamologists... know what I mean?

So... for those that have found someone to do this procedure where you live, how did you do it?????

[regina]

Hi

Im in seattle...dr hughes in downtown seattle did my eyelids once a week...I tried others, but they werent as aggressive as he was...

[regina]

how did i do it myself?

i ordered a 15x magnifier mirror... got a qtip, got it wet so that it doesnt stick to my inner eyes. Pull down with left hand at the margin, insert qtip on inner lid and squeeze with left finger tip and roll up on the qtip the same time..its hard to get right...and it always pissed my eyes off too! Thats the way my eye doc did to me...but he does it better!

[regina]

yeah..the top is ridiculous

i tried rolling it over the qtip...and just couldnt do it! Anybody able to do the tops?

[Ariel]

Thank you for posting this thread Saag!!!

[jenny2008]

Hey there.. I too wish I had a doctor locally who could express my glands..no one where i live does it.. it is so crazy and there are soooomany optometrists and opthamologists.. i have to go to Louisville-2 hour drive to get it done and because of my eye condition i have to get a ride there! so basically i go every month to 2 months..wish i could go more...

i do not think i could express them myself.. omg.. how painful... and as already said how can you do the top lids? my lower lids dont get too bad....

thanks SAAG for this post..someone should have started this a long time ago!! I hope you find someone in your area!!

[Guest]

Thanks for the replies everyone!

Well, what do ya know... I heard back from the optometrist's office today, and he DOES do MG expression.... I totally did not expect this answer at all. So here I was getting myself totally frustrated for nothing haha... that'll teach me...

So... I wonder why this isn't mentioned to patients as a possible treatment... do they only suggest it to patients whose MG's are badly bulging out like a lot of those pics found on google? hmmm... I wonder....

Anyhow, I'm glad to know that i can get it done if required. Mine are looking more clogged up after too much computer time over the weekend etc... I'll see if they calm down after a few days of giving them a break... if they don't calm down, then I'll have to see about booking an appointment to get them expressed I suppose.... it would be interesting to see if it helps significantly.

[Aaron77]

SAAG, did you ask your opthamologist to do the expression? just wondering what his thoughts might have been on this one. I asked mine and he said to just do the warm compresses and eyelid massage were for.

[Guest]

I haven't asked my ophth to do it yet... that's something I'll ask him about next time too...it's just that I have a feeling that MG expression isn't his thing ...

[Ariel]

if you scrawl to the bottom of the opening page to "forum jump" there is more info on this topic on the:
MG & LID CARE: Lid warming, expression, hygiene etc. forum.

[Ariel]

I found this on another thread:

"I'm Paul Gilwit, MD, a dry eye specialist practicing in Fort Lauderdale Florida. I have patented a new meibomian gland expression instrument which gently opens meibomian glands without the use of sharp implements. I have found that with multiple expression procedures, which usually take about 5 minutes, along with lid hygiene and holistic nutritional supplimentation that meibomian gland function can be remarkably and permanently improved. The quality of the gland secretions also improve over time.

Meibomian gland secretions hold the tear film together for a much longer time. This dramatically improves over 80-90 % of dry eye sufferers. The benifits of this procedure is felt immediately by the patient. Many of my patients have experienced over 4 months of dry eye symptom relief after the very first expression. In the past dry eye was thought to be mostly caused by decreased tear production but now I've shown that the vast majority of cases are really tear dysfunction stemming mostly from meibomian gland disease. Call my office for any further explanation or assistance 954-772-9911."

I contacted Dr. Gilwit's clinic and I'm waiting to hear from him about the device he mentioned.

[spmcc]

Re: meibomian gland expressor kit

I own this (Gulden MG Expressor kit): http://www.guldenophthalmics.com/ccp7/MG-Expressor-Kit

I should try to use it regularly... but sometimes I find that my lids just get more annoyed when I mess with them!

[Ariel]

Thanks Spmcc,

Isn't this device making it easier for you to express your glands in any way? It should be better than your fingers or a Q-tip. I guess the Jaegar plate or the mastrota paddle should make its use more effective.

This link at the bottom of the one you included is very helpful. I imagine this is what getting your glands expressed by an eye doctor must be like. I haven't been able to find one who would do anything like it in this country.

http://www.guldenophthalmics.com/ima...Expressor3.pdf

[blessings]

Where do you get your meibomian glands expressed in Louisville? How do they express your glands? Are you pleased with this doctor?

Hey there.. I too wish I had a doctor locally who could express my glands..no one where i live does it.. it is so crazy and there are soooomany optometrists and opthamologists.. i have to go to Louisville-2 hour drive to getA it done and because of my eye condition i have to get a ride there! so basically i go every month to 2 months..wish i could go more...

i do not think i could express them myself.. omg.. how painful... and as already said how can you do the top lids? my lower lids dont get too bad....

thanks SAAG for this post..someone should have started this a long time ago!! I hope you find someone in your area!!