Probing experience

[JJdryeye]

I'm guessing the manual expression wasn't effective then?

[Minni]

Yes I had a meibography. Didn't tried Lipiflow no. Tried cyclosporine and manual expression, but that's all...

How does one get to have a meibography done? In my other post, I mentioned that the clinic I visited failed to let me know anything about my meiobians (other than "yes, he checked your meiobians")
What is the usual scenario for clinics?
I'd have rathered they dispense with their fanciness, in favor of some genuine testing other-than just Schirmer & Tear Lab, or whatever they did with the lights & the strips.

Here are a few pictures of my eyes after the Probing. What? The "Insert image" feature didn't work on this. If anyone knows specifically how it works please let me know.

Maybe try this, which works for me, albeit convoluted:

CLICK:
Manage Attachments Button
Add Files Button (upper right)
Window pops up
Select Files Button
Upload Files Button

Hope it works!

[dominorose]

Eyes are worse than ever today. Can hardly open them, they burn with a sharp stabbing pain each time I open them. This is too much. I am discouraged I feel I do not have much options left and am sobafraid to make things worse now (

[littlemermaid]

So sorry. Your eye doc, SD, needs to know that you're suffering after MG probing so he can manage the after-effects. Hope things improve soon x

[dominorose]

I sent him an email...he told me to go to the ERs if I didnt felt better. Dismissing doc on top of that...

[Minni]

Post-probing, what duration have you been in proximity to:
outGAUSSing
..and possibly-outgassing
....computer or other electronics?

[littlemermaid]

he told me to go to the ERs if I didnt felt better

Is this the ER for the eye clinic? Did he do MG probing in the public health service? Are your medical records shared between clinics?

[dominorose]

Emergencies, sorry! I don't really understand your questions LM.?

[littlemermaid]

I was just wondering if you had to go to the Emergency Room (Accident and Emergency - A&E), whether they would have your medical history so they can treat you.

[xpro]

@dominorose

I had a similar experience after probing in one eye. one week of antibiotic and steroid drops fixed it.

[bostoneye]

Here's my probing and post-probing story in a nutshell. After years of severe MGD that fluctuated between not too bad and really miserable, I was probed about seven weeks ago in a clinical trial at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary in Boston. The trial is led by Dr. Pedram Hamrah, whom I've seen for a few years and is very knowledgeable and resourceful, always stressing that it's a chronic disease you have to fight on many fronts.
Despite two lidocaine injections in my upper eyelid - which hurt like hell, frankly - the procedure was more painful than I ever imagined it would be. A LOT more painful. He probed the glands once with a smaller probe and repeated with a longer probe. Took about 30 minutes, my eyes streaming with tears but I survived. As part of the trial, I was prescribed blephamide 2x/day for two weeks and 1x/day for two weeks.
RESULTS - Increasing improvement for about a month to the point I felt this was a huge breakthrough. Very comfortable, only occasionally using Refresh nighttime gel (the only eyedrop that has ever really helped). But after I stopped the blephamide - as I had feared -- the inflammation returned and even though post-probing imaging showed the glands were much less blocked, I lost most of the benefit. Dr. Hamrah thinks the canals are swelling from the inflammation. So he prescribed me .03 percent testosterone drops from Leiter's compounding pharmacy in California (mentioned in several other threads.) It is supposed to dampen the inflammation. So far, after a week or more of 3-4 applications a day, I do think it is helping. As always, time will tell. The bottom line: I think probing is worth trying for anyone with severe MGD who isn't helped by anything else. Would I do it again? If I can keep the inflammation at bay, and if the probing holds up for, say a year, I would probably do it again, depending on the cost. (It was free for me in the clinical trial, though I had a 30 percent chance of being randomized to a sham control procedure - which I most definitely wasn't!)

[Mahniah]

I had probing last month, upper lids only, and it made a huge difference. The first week was rough, maybe even a little worse, but then it started getting better and after three weeks, my eyes were comfortable, maybe still a little sandy. Yes, it was painful but not as bad as it was for others, and well worth it. I'm now going to do the bottom lids. I was part of the NIH study at Mass Eye and Ear that bostoneye mentioned a few months ago, directed by Dr. Pedram Hamrah, and they are still recruiting, so if you're interested the info is here...
https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02256969

[Daniel2]

I had probing a long time ago but felt no difference, yeah the pain was very bad.
And my doctor wants to do it again but for the whole eye, first hge wants to do Meiboflow and then the probing.

Is it safe though? I mean I just can't imagine a procedure so invasive and extremely painful that it wouldn't leave any scar tissue behind, or damage the glands..
Does anyone know here if it's dangerous to do it? Or leave any sort irreparable damage to the tissue?

I mean if you want your glands to be open, and it ends up forming scar tissue in it, wouldn't that block the canals? Maybe I'm overthinking it but It just makes you think..

[LaDiva]

My eye doctor agrees with you Daniel. I would like to have it done, but he says "no" because of scar tissue and the potential of damaging established pathways.

[Daniel2]

Yep, does anyone know if there's a safer alternative with the same benefits as probing but without those risks, maybe a IPL treatment could be similar to it? I dont know.