Lid scrubs & your lasik surgeon's recommendation

[TSP13]

I wanted to ask the lasik patients what their doctor recommended when it came to lid scrubs. Mine says small drop of baby shampoo on a washcloth, pull down lower lid scrub inner rim of eye at the lashline (gently but thoroughly), then lift the upper eyelid & washthe inner rim of upper lashline. I now know from reading the archives baby shampoo can be irritating to some people. I have attempted to explain my feelings on this to the doctor who performed my lasik i.e. my eyelashes are falling out, causes immediate redness, and skin is left feeling dry & tight. I have been told, amongst other things, I am not doing the scrubs correctly, the skin would not feel dry & tight if I did the warm compresses immediately following the scrub, I am obviously not doing the compressions at all, and so on, and so forth. The last follow up check up I had involved me getting my inner eyelid rim scrapped [spelling] across with a dry q-tip to remove blockage, being told this wouldn't happen if you'd do the after care correctly, and having the nurse asked to show her how to do the scrubs correctly AGAIN! Even the nurse was embarrassed! Can any one relate? Sorry this was so long, but I am getting really angry about paying a huge amount of money to now be treated as "less than" in the face of a common issue!

[laine]

Baby shampoo

Hi Tammy,
Well I haven't had Lasik but have had severe dry eyes for 5 years or so. I cannot use baby shampoo, it is extremely drying and irritating for me. Sorry that you are being treated in such a way and from having had a number of bad experiences with doctor's who do not treat me and my opinions with respect I would recommend that you find someone who does. It took me 6 attempts to find the right opthamologist. I wish you the best of luck,
Elaine

[Rebecca Petris]

Hi Tammy and welcome!

I wanted to ask the lasik patients what their doctor recommended when it came to lid scrubs.

Like with many things... all over the map. Baby shampoo is commonly recommended and also (I believe) commonly an irritant - especially if used as (shudder) described, on the inner rim where it's pretty much guaranteed to get into the tear film.

Personally I use plain saline (Unisol or similar, unpreserved) on a Q-tip. I also find it useful to do scrubs after rather than before heat, basically to push on the glands after thickened oil has been loosened up by the heat.

Some other popular ways are with Ocusoft lidscrubs, and we're hearing more and more about Sterilid as well. (See our partial product listings at http://www.dryeyezone.com/encyclopedia/lidscrubs.html.)

Suggestion for dealing with the dr.'s office:

You've obviously put a lot more effort into being compliant than the average patient and you certainly don't deserve to be disbelieved or scolded. (Maybe a fluke/bad day?) Next time you go I'd get assertive from the start e.g. "I've put a lot of effort into this and feel I've been compliant with instructions but this is just not working for me and I feel it's time to move on. I've researched several alternatives, such as [mention some alternative products/approaches]. I propose to do [describe which you want]. Do you see any problem with that and if so what?" If you don't meet with better treatment at that point, find another doctor - and tell this one why you're moving on.

[TSP13]

Thank you for the support. I have gone above & beyond compliance as I want the best results from my lasik surgery without any complications. I haven't had any other suggestions offered to me by my doctor. It seems as if it's a "one size fits all" attitude. I know that is not the case after reading the posts here. I'm glad I found a forum like this! I will be much better prepared for my next follow up visit.

[shells]

Hi Tammy!

I agree with Rebecca. Just be assertive next time you are in there and hopefully you'll get better treatment! I use the OcuSoft eyelid scrubs that Rebecca mentioned, and I don't find them irritating at all. I actually do them in the shower. I just close my eyes tightly, work the pad back and forth gently across each eyelid and then rinse. That method seems to work for me, and since my eyes are closed tightly, it doesn't leave any room for accidently getting it IN my eye! Good luck!

-Shells

[charmee]

I can relate, TSP13, to what you said about the doctors.

It's hard to explain, but I don't like how my doctors make me feel. I feel like they don't really hear what I say.

I really hope you find a way to make yourself heard (even if I can't do it myself!)

...Reminds me of this episode of Scrubs, where the running joke was that doctors only listen to their patients for 15 seconds! They had a little countdown timer in the corner of the screen. It was hilarious!

Charmee

[TSP13]

I really do believe doctors only listen for 15 seconds! I can be assertive, but it comes across as really nasty. I just hate having to go there in order to be heard. I was originally doing the scrubs with my eyes closed, not squeezed shut, but closed. That was the start of the condescending attitude because "that is not how you were told to do it, no wonder you still have a problem!". I never did like to follow directions when I was a kid , but this is really important so I have been extra vigilant.