Mucus fishing syndrome

[stringsandthings]

(Sorry, this was originally posted in an archives folder, I'm new! Sorry to duplicate.) I have this. I don't need to describe how horrible it is, you all know that. I have some questions about other people's experiences. I have taken to removing the strings with tweezers, by pulling out my eyelid and snagging the strings in mid-air, so as to reduce the contact with the ocular surface. I have noticed though that after pulling away the loose strings or after rubbing my eyes sometimes I cannot see a 'string' as such when looking for the source of irritation, but can see something that looks like a small wrinkle in the membrane on my eyelid. When I pull this away with tweezers it comes away in a string, but I noticed that it actually looks more like a sheet when it comes off, as if I am pulling away a big film of mucus. This relieves the irritation and gritty feeling. Does anyone else get this film? The strings are quite tough and stretchy, not like the gunk that ends up in the corner of my eye. I also experience the 'mucus triangles' and yes, I get some sort of perverse enjoyment out of pulling them away.

The most frustrating thing for me is that when I lie down my eyes water excessively and wiping this away only makes it worse. The excessive tears crust in the morning on my eyelashes. It's so hard to sleep and only happens when I lie down, does anyone else get this? Antihistamines don't help.

Eyedrops have never worked for me, but I have only developed this condition this year. I've used Polytears and Clear Eyes allergy drops with a mucolytic agent and they provided temporary relief from the irritation and pain, but never helped the strings. Antibiotics helped a little but never made it go away completely, probably only treated the initial cause. After a couple of months with this I went to a doctor for a skin condition, which turns out was a dramatic worsening of my eczema but was incorrectly identified as an allergic reaction. I was prescribed prednisone and had a massive improvement in my eyes! I barely touched them at all during the 5-day course, except for once in the morning (I couldn't help myself). I then experienced a month or two of normal eyes, and man, I cherished it. However, I still had a tiny amount of white mucus in the corner of my eye, and couldn't help wiping that away. I think it was this touching that brought the strings back. I have an appointment next week and will definitely be asking for prednisone. I understand it is a strong steroid so I may not have any luck, but all you long-term sufferers should look into this! Just in case you were interested, the prednisone provided temporary relief from my eczema but within 24hrs of finishing the course it was back, and worse. Don't use prednisone for eczema. Thanks for listening and I hope we can help each other.

P.S. I have no official diagnosis of dry eye, it was suggested by my Doc but so was allergies. I had no problem with my eyes before the mucus strings suddenly happened. The first time I went to the Doc they wouldn't even diagnose conjunctivitis. It just wasn't your typical 'pink eye.' I personally think that this was initiated by a bout of bacterial conjunctivitis and perpetuated by fishing. There may be some allergic component and I'm sure spending all my time in a heated room staring at a computer screen is not helping. (Can't help it, I'm a student!) The most frustrating thing is I can pinpoint when it all happened, I rubbed my eyes one night and fell asleep thinking 'gee that was stupid, I'll probably have some sort of eye infection tomorrow.' Never imagined it would last this long...

[NotADryEye]

Crusting can be a sign of infection. You are going to see a doctor soon, yes?

Also, I had excessive tearing when sitting down and sometimes when lying down, but always when sitting for months on end. My doctor told me it was an autonomic nervous system response and that I needed to exercise my lower body, 20-25 minutes a few times a week. Something to do with the twitch muscles. A week or two after starting the exercises the tearing stopped when I was sitting.

I'll admit, I was secretly a little skeptical that exercising my lower body would help. But I'd been through so much already that I didn't hesitate and began exercising the next day. It worked.

[stringsandthings]

Yes I saw the Doc today and he is convinced it is allergies. No prednisone for me Thought fair enough, it's not good for long term use. He did not seem to think I had any infection, probably because there is no gunk in my eyes in the morning, only dried tears. Wow that is so strange I would never have connected exercise with tearing! I have been pretty slack and I don't get out much because exams are coming up. Will give it a go, it can't hurt! The latest regime from the Doc is Pantanol antihistamine drops, Refresh eye ointment for lubrication and Promethazine antihistamine tablets. Anyone have any luck with these? Still no advice on how to deal with the strings, he seems to ignore it when I bring it up. Maybe he thinks they will go away with this allergy medication?

[Rocklobster]

Hello,

I've been dealing with eye mucus for quite some time now. The only thing that makes it a little bit more manageable is: Patanol (once in the morning/night), tons of Omega 3 supplements, and an oral antihistamine. I know exactly how you feel; I've been to many ophthalmologists, all having different diagnoses. The Patanol also helps with any inflammation you have (to a degree), but it's definitely no cure. I still get mucus build up through out the day and have chronic inflammation in the corner of my eye, but life goes on.

Keep us updated!

[LaDiva]

Hi Strings,
I had this when my eyes were at their very worst. Some of those strings were like rubber bands! Yugh. I don't have them in my right eye anymore, but still have problems with mucous in my left eye. If I can keep my fingers out of my left eye, it will probably go away. Same for you. The eye doctor gave me acetylcysteine drops a couple of years ago, and while they cleared the mucous briefly, it just came right back again. Best of luck to you. I think the key is keeping your fingers/tweezers out of your eyes!

[stringsandthings]

Hi Rocklobster and LaDiva,
The Pantanol does seem to relieve my eyes a bit although the antihistamines I've been taking don't seem to be doing anything. They used to help my eyes stop watering but now I have these viscous, yellow tears pretty much 24/7. I've been on antihistamines my whole life though, is it possible to become resistant? La Diva I sure know what you mean about rubber bands. I really try not to touch my eyes, but the strings are just so irritating. Seriously, how can something so soft feel like sand in my eyes. It's so hard to forgo the relief that removing the strings brings, for the long term possibility of getting rid of them. I've always been told I have a problem with instant gratification! Though it is heartening to hear that keeping your fingers out of your eyes will actually make them go away. I will try harder. Thank you both for your input.

[LaDiva]

LOL! I tried very hard today, strings, but I still caught myself sticking my finger in my eye. I know what you mean! I need to try harder too!

[Rocklobster]

Any updates? Haha trying to keep hope that there is a solution to this abundant eye mucus issue.

[stringsandthings]

Hi Rocklobster
Yes, a few upates actually! When I got home from university I went to my family GP (who is awesome). She got me an appointment with an ophthalmologist and agreed to prescribing a very short course of prednisone (20mg a day for 5 days) though not until she had thoroughly described the terrible side effects it can have, and problems with long term use. I had to beg for it. Needless to say, it worked and my eyes have been completely clear for a month. I can almost remember what it was like to not have to worry about my eyes, and to be able to rub them if they got itchy and not have terrible consequences. However, I was not so optimistic as to think I was completely out of the woods, and lo and behold I woke up with watery, crusty eyes this morning. I saw the ophthalmologist a few days ago and he prescribed a 'preventer' -rexacrom, I think- which I picked up this afternoon. I will let you know if it helps. Good luck with your eyes and happy holidays

[stringsandthings]

Hi all,
Have been using Rexacrom for 2 or 3 weeks now and it is working very, very well I think I remember being prescribed it the very first time I saw a doctor about this but not having much luck. I think (in my unprofessional opinion) this was because my eyes were already gunky when I started using it, and I was still fishing. Having the prednisone clear up my eyes before I began the eyedrops has been the key, I feel. I still get a tiny bit of white mucus in the corners of my eyes but it doesn't bother me; it's kind of like the 'sleepy' I used to have a a kid, only not dried out. I also wake up with gritty eyes every now and then, and I've glimpsed a string or two on these mornings but it all goes away after the eyedrops. Rexacrom is a mast stabiliser that uses Sodium Cromoglicate as its active ingredient. I think it's pretty generic. I used it 4 times a day for the first two weeks and am now down to twice a day; once in the morning and once before I go to bed. If allergies are causing your mucus (the original source of mucus, not the stuff that is perpetuated by fishing) then give it a go! All the best, and Merry Christmas.

[Rocklobster]

Hey Stringsandthings,

Is every thing still going well? I forgot to ask, on top of the eye mucus, were your eyes red? I've been using a mast stabilizer (Patanol), but still have eye mucus throughout the day and eyes are still red. Still looking for that "miracle". Hope all is well!

[stringsandthings]

Hi Rocklobster!
Yes, everything is still well I still get that tiny bit of mucus in the corners of my eyes but it doesn't bother me, even when I forget to use the eye drops. My eyes were not particularly red, only sometimes in the morning or if I had aggravated them. However, during the worst of it I was using allergy drops that had a vasoconstrictor in them, which apparently is a BAD IDEA in the long term, but it meant my eyes were rarely red. I know I used Patanol at some point but I don't remember how effective it was. I remember being frustrated because it never felt like any of the drops were having an effect while my eyes were at their worst. Believing that your medicine will work (or not) makes a huge difference to the outcome though. I was convinced that I needed to clear my eyes first (i.e. with steroids) and then prevent them getting bad again by using the drops. So I never really believed the drops would do it on their own. That meant that they were unlikely to have an effect on me in the first place. It also meant that when I followed the course of treatment that I believed would work, I got much better results. The placebo effect is very real. Patanol might be an excellent drug and it might have worked fine for me if I'd thought it was helping. As it is, I got the prednisone I believed I needed, and I'm still using Rexacrom because an ophthalmologist prescribed it to me and I believed in him. And so far I've had excellent results, so I'm likely to promote a combination of steroids and Rexacrom as the drugs that did it for me. What I'm saying is, I don't know whether it was the drugs or my belief in the drugs that brought about my own 'miracle'. All I can suggest is that you look for a treatment plan that you really think will work. It can't hurt, anyway Good luck and I hope you find your miracle!

[herefishy]

After going crazy with mucus strings for some weeks, I changed drops, and it's 90% better. Changed from Thera Tears to Systane Ultra, but I wonder, if it is just a matter of any change helps? Maybe something to try for you sufferers.