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Well, I like to keep things short and sweet and rarely take "no" or "can't" for an answer.
I recently have been waking up with dryish eyes. Dryish meaning just that where they ache to an extent and then tears begin. I have been reading this board for about a month now and have accumulated EXTENSIVE knowledge from here and other sources.
First step was to go to my famiy doctor. One fo the seconday doctors gave me a bottle of soothe quite some time ago after they said i was "mildly" dry. Well, this time I had horrible aching pain in my left eye and both eyes were bloodshot. The doctor checked me out, said it looked like keratitis, said it looked like a dry eye. Never did MG expression, ASKED ME if i had rosacea, and handed me a pre-printed instruction pamphlet on how to use the two prescriptions he was writing me: Lotemax and Restasis. He then said "schedule an appointment in 3 months."
For some reason I felt I wasn't "dry" like that. However, I began the Lotemax and my eyes were whiter than extra bright printer paper. I then began reading more and more on here and decided that my gut was most likely right so I scheduled an appointment with Dr. Latkany.
Short story shorter, MGD due to rosacea, not aqueous deficient (reason why I didn't really "feel dry"), TBUT of 3 seconds
and ocular rosacea causes inflamation. Stopped taking Lotemax and all the Restasis would have done was burn me. Given Pataday and used it a couple times (works like a charm) but stopped due to concern over BAK content. (.01%). Dr. also stated I may sleep with my eyes slightly open. Interestingly enough, taping my eyes shut does help to an extent (have to be literally, 100% taped shut to make a difference.)
Now, my mission to find the reason of my MGD and try to save my MG's unless they are gone (atrophied). I go back to the Dr. in approx. a month to see if my TBUT increased from manual expression (qtip method every night with heat application as well). I do see the glands opening and there is some liquid but not sure if its enough to make a difference. The onyl thing that has me nervous is that many medical reviews also call Non-Inflammatory MGD "Atrophic MGD." Not a cool nickname; not cool at all.
I have been extensively researching reasons behind MGD caused by rosacea and a Dr. Tseng has mentioned the Demodex mites as a possibility (mites that feed off of things in sebaceous areas and hair follicles). He is in Miami, so i am entertaining running the study by someone locally and getting things checked out through a microscope. Other than that i am not sure what else could have caused this except for constant mild inflammation that was so mild I never noticed it. Who knows? I sure don't but I am going to exaust every possibility and reason, not only for me, but for all of you on here searching for answers and everyone who hasn't found this site yet and is in the dark. I know I was in the dark until I found this site and am very grateful for all of you as well as Rebecca as well as the doctors and medical professionals dedicating their lives to helping us. Dry eye is quite bizarre, and I find it quite bizarre, that in my 20's, my MG's are dysfunctioning and I have very VERY mild syptoms. I NEED to find out what caused this.
I will write more in depth on some of these topics I am about to mention:
1.) I have spoken to Dr. Gilwit who states he has a method patented method of expressing glands. Sounds interesting and am considering visiting him in FL. I will most likely have the Demodex test done first and get a solid indication whether or not my MG's are clogged or non-functioning due to atrophy.
2.) I have spoken to Dr. Daljit, famous for using a Fugo blade, a plasma cutting device on a 100 micron steel filament, about the procedure. He said even when clogged, the blade melts the blockage. Seems like a good idea if you have skin growth, however, my glands are open to some extent so I am not sure if this is quite for me. Not to mention, I dont know if anyone in US is doing such procedure. Probably woud have to sign a waiver before a doctor starts poking the eyelids with a "plasma cutting device"
3.) Acid treatment, mentioned by many of you, may be a consideration, but again, not sure if its something for me since I do not seem to have any skin growth over the openings of the MG's.
I wish everyone the best. I want to make something very clear, however: This website is the reason I sought a second opinion. If I did not meet with Dr. Latkany I most likelly would have burned my eyes for no reason. Never accept defeat and never accept the first answer. I was taught never to take the first pitch when I played baseball as a child, and now, this is analagous to my life: I never take the first pitch. Education is great and so is experience, but in certain instances no one knows you better than you. When it comes to seeking professional help it is IMPERATIVE to seek someone who is "that guy/girl" in the field. When someone is "that person" it means they are dedicated to a cause, not to just making a living. These contributors to the well being of human life plus our dedication will be reign supreme. These are the people who define success as helping us.
Best Regards
I recently have been waking up with dryish eyes. Dryish meaning just that where they ache to an extent and then tears begin. I have been reading this board for about a month now and have accumulated EXTENSIVE knowledge from here and other sources.
First step was to go to my famiy doctor. One fo the seconday doctors gave me a bottle of soothe quite some time ago after they said i was "mildly" dry. Well, this time I had horrible aching pain in my left eye and both eyes were bloodshot. The doctor checked me out, said it looked like keratitis, said it looked like a dry eye. Never did MG expression, ASKED ME if i had rosacea, and handed me a pre-printed instruction pamphlet on how to use the two prescriptions he was writing me: Lotemax and Restasis. He then said "schedule an appointment in 3 months."
For some reason I felt I wasn't "dry" like that. However, I began the Lotemax and my eyes were whiter than extra bright printer paper. I then began reading more and more on here and decided that my gut was most likely right so I scheduled an appointment with Dr. Latkany.
Short story shorter, MGD due to rosacea, not aqueous deficient (reason why I didn't really "feel dry"), TBUT of 3 seconds
and ocular rosacea causes inflamation. Stopped taking Lotemax and all the Restasis would have done was burn me. Given Pataday and used it a couple times (works like a charm) but stopped due to concern over BAK content. (.01%). Dr. also stated I may sleep with my eyes slightly open. Interestingly enough, taping my eyes shut does help to an extent (have to be literally, 100% taped shut to make a difference.)Now, my mission to find the reason of my MGD and try to save my MG's unless they are gone (atrophied). I go back to the Dr. in approx. a month to see if my TBUT increased from manual expression (qtip method every night with heat application as well). I do see the glands opening and there is some liquid but not sure if its enough to make a difference. The onyl thing that has me nervous is that many medical reviews also call Non-Inflammatory MGD "Atrophic MGD." Not a cool nickname; not cool at all.
I have been extensively researching reasons behind MGD caused by rosacea and a Dr. Tseng has mentioned the Demodex mites as a possibility (mites that feed off of things in sebaceous areas and hair follicles). He is in Miami, so i am entertaining running the study by someone locally and getting things checked out through a microscope. Other than that i am not sure what else could have caused this except for constant mild inflammation that was so mild I never noticed it. Who knows? I sure don't but I am going to exaust every possibility and reason, not only for me, but for all of you on here searching for answers and everyone who hasn't found this site yet and is in the dark. I know I was in the dark until I found this site and am very grateful for all of you as well as Rebecca as well as the doctors and medical professionals dedicating their lives to helping us. Dry eye is quite bizarre, and I find it quite bizarre, that in my 20's, my MG's are dysfunctioning and I have very VERY mild syptoms. I NEED to find out what caused this.
I will write more in depth on some of these topics I am about to mention:
1.) I have spoken to Dr. Gilwit who states he has a method patented method of expressing glands. Sounds interesting and am considering visiting him in FL. I will most likely have the Demodex test done first and get a solid indication whether or not my MG's are clogged or non-functioning due to atrophy.
2.) I have spoken to Dr. Daljit, famous for using a Fugo blade, a plasma cutting device on a 100 micron steel filament, about the procedure. He said even when clogged, the blade melts the blockage. Seems like a good idea if you have skin growth, however, my glands are open to some extent so I am not sure if this is quite for me. Not to mention, I dont know if anyone in US is doing such procedure. Probably woud have to sign a waiver before a doctor starts poking the eyelids with a "plasma cutting device"
3.) Acid treatment, mentioned by many of you, may be a consideration, but again, not sure if its something for me since I do not seem to have any skin growth over the openings of the MG's.
I wish everyone the best. I want to make something very clear, however: This website is the reason I sought a second opinion. If I did not meet with Dr. Latkany I most likelly would have burned my eyes for no reason. Never accept defeat and never accept the first answer. I was taught never to take the first pitch when I played baseball as a child, and now, this is analagous to my life: I never take the first pitch. Education is great and so is experience, but in certain instances no one knows you better than you. When it comes to seeking professional help it is IMPERATIVE to seek someone who is "that guy/girl" in the field. When someone is "that person" it means they are dedicated to a cause, not to just making a living. These contributors to the well being of human life plus our dedication will be reign supreme. These are the people who define success as helping us.
Best Regards
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