I went to the opthamologist around Christmas for some puffiness under my eye. He said my eyes were bone dry but didn't see any problems. :'( Okay, now it is January, and my puffiness under my left eye is worse. My eyes are so dry. No discharge or pain but something is wrong, or is this just part of sicca. My problem eye looks like a droopy hound dog eye with some minor itching. Hot packs take the swelling down. I wonder if I am allergic to one of the many things that I put in my eyes. I have some bumps or whelps under my eye too. Now I need to drive 40 minutes on Monday to see the ophthalmologist. He wants to see me for everything, but my optometrist is 5 minutes away. I hope someone is in the office on Monday, since it is a holiday. I am going to highly complain if someone doesn't see me tomorrow. Sorry, just venting. You know, Monday is my day off of work. Blah, blah, what a way to spend your day off. >:(
Winnie
If this were me, I would get an appointment at the eye doctor and by the time he saw me all the eye problems would be gone. ;) That has been my typical appointment with any doctor.
hello Winnie.
do you have a rheumatologist? have you had any testing for SJS?
My GP sent me to a rheumatologist for joint pain. for years him and my opthalmalogist said I had allergies and occular rosacea and treated me with meds for that and of course they never worked because it was sjogrens all along.
My very first appt with my rheumatologist he walked in and said "hello...you've got sjogrens". no blood work was even done yet. he said my eyes were a dead give away. sure enough , in a few days I got the call my lab was positive for sjogrens (SSA and SSB). I was miffed that this rheumy walked in and nailed it in 2 seconds but for 10 plus years no one else could. My rheumy said "they don't know what to look for" in the other drs. defense.
hope you don't have to go 10 years for someone to make a sound judgement call.
good luck in your journey.
eye2dry
Winnie,
Any eye problems need to be seen to pronto.
However since you have had the eyes looked at and he coulden't find anything untoward,
I'd go for allergy or some kind of irritation,
never the less if your concerned, a second opinion is warrented.
Dolly x
Winnie,
I just was at eye dr. with same complaint... the puffiness started around Christams time...one thing that helped was cool washrag on the eys for a few minutes- took away [uffiness.
i had scaley itching around that area too- i have blepharitis so i blamed that- what helped my scaley itchy was breakingopena vittamin e capsule and puttingthe oil under my eyes. i ue vit e oil for everything and it works great.
been having very dry issues lately- its a never ending battle huh?
lori
Eye2dry - yes, I have a rheumatologist. All that he can come up with in sicca. That is fine with me because I am on plaquenil for fatigue and minor joint pain which is what everyone else is on so I don't necessarily need a diagnosis. I just hope that it does not get worse.
Lori - I have some dryness under my eye also. Blepharitis? I'll have to look that one up. My eye looks 10 times worse in the morning and if I put a hot pack on it - may need to change to cold pack, then by the end of the day, my eye looks better. I think I will call the eye doctor one more time and then decide what to do after that. I have a dermatologist that I just got released from so it would not be difficult to get in to see her. I have already decided that if I am feeling okay in the morning, I want to do some light shopping after my appointment too!! ;)
Winnie
Hi Winnie,
I have meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD) along with blepharitis, and there are days that my eye lids are swollen and itch like no ones business. Its a chronic condition for me and no matter what I try, just can't seem to get rid of it (it goes from really good to very bad and everything in-between). The opthamologist has given me a revolving script for Azasite to keep it from really getting bad again (it stings like crazy, but it does work).
Good luck with your eyes and I hope that the doctor can help.
Take care of yourself -
Patze
Hi Winnie,
I noticed that now that I wash my lids with baby shampoo and warm water on a washcloth....I've had much less problems with swollen lids. I wear a tad of eye makeup and I think it helps to remove it and then go over the lids with baby shampoo. I apply my tear drops after the lid scrubs.
My mom had terrible issues with her eye lids. They would get puffy. They would get all sore. The doctor told her once to wash with baby shampoo as well. It did help. She barely wore anything more than some mascara from time to time. She also used just some Vaseline. I think my mom probably had sjogren's or whatever autoimmune disease I may have. Her eyes, her dry skin, she slept a lot. She had a big bump on her one wrist that the doctors never seemed to concerned over. At the end of her life, she succumbed to a genetic form of kidney cancer.
Well, I guess I didn't complain enough because as soon as I called to make an appointment, the nurse asked who I was and what was my complaint. As soon as I told her that I was on plaquenil, she said that I would have to see my doctor and that he was not in today. I have an appt. tomorrow afternoon. Thus, I will need to take a 1/2 day off work. Under my eye is not as swollen today, but now it looks crusty and I think it is spreading. :(
Winnie
Is it conjunctivitis?
Joe, you know, conjunctivitis or commonly called 'pink eye' sounds right if Winnie has crusty stuff on eye lids.
Quote from: Winnie on January 15, 2012, 05:29:25 AM
I went to the opthamologist around Christmas for some puffiness under my eye. He said my eyes were bone dry but didn't see any problems. :'( Okay, now it is January, and my puffiness under my left eye is worse. My eyes are so dry. No discharge or pain but something is wrong, or is this just part of sicca.
"Sicca" is a subset of Sjögren's Syndrome, that is defined by symptoms of dry eye (alone) and dry mouth (alone). So far, in response to your post, others have mentioned blepharitis, Meibomian Gland Dysfunction (MBG), and ocular rosacea.
The daily eye scrub with either "No More Tears" baby shampoo, or Ocusoft products, helps with all of the above. I have MBG and ocular rosacea, diagnosed by an ophthalmologist, with suggestions for treatment. Over three months with scrubs twice a day [well, almost twice a day. I'm just not that *good.*] the eye problems have cooled down considerably. I had a little puffiness -- possibly not so much because I don't use eye makeup.
An ophthalmologist might not drop the words Sjögren's Syndrome even if s/he suspects it's there. Instead, s/he would focus on treating the problem. It's not ignorance of Sjögren's, necessarily. My new rheumy, in October, just diagnosed Sicca -- actually the research ophthalmologist I also saw, in the "Dry Eye Center," *did* make the call that I had Sjögren's, but then she works closely with the Sjögren's Syndrome Center of PennMedicine.
QuoteMy problem eye looks like a droopy hound dog eye with some minor itching. Hot packs take the swelling down. I wonder if I am allergic to one of the many things that I put in my eyes.
{Winnie}
I am not a doctor; just have lived a long time with a lot of medical problems, including allergies. The ophthalmologist you'll see this week will probably tell you what eye drops to use (or prescribe Restasis). If not, I use Genteal Mild to Moderate eye drops, and GenTeal Nightime PM ointment on the eye that is worse. These are preservative-free (not the brand, but these specific drops and ointment).
The Ocusoft scrub (either as wipes or as a foam) or Johnson & Johnson's is the only other thing to touch your eye!
I hope your checkup with the ophthalmologist, later today, goes well. An optometrist does not have anywhere near the training that an ophthalmologist has, and I'm glad your ophthalmologist wants to see you in person, despite the long drive.
{side note: ocular rosacea and MBGD can produce crustiness. The Ophthalmologist will know.}
Best,
Soycoffee
I finally went to the opthamalogist today and there is no infection or inflammation but a lot of irritation. He thinks I may be having an allergic reaction to restasis and he put a plug in my bad eye and told me to come back in one week for a report on which eye is better. I am not to use restasis at all for the next week. (I just bought a new packet!) The plug is irritating but oh do I have tears in my eye!!! I guess time will tell. I just hope that this gluey feeling (the hound dog eye is better and now I have a gluey, sticky film on my eyes when I put drops in that make my eye lids stick together) that I have had in the last several days disappears. I don't really have problems with my right eye, so I am not sure how I will make a good comparison. He said they are equally "bone" dry and the gluey, sticky feeling is caused by using drops on very dry eyes. He will possibly put a plug in my right eye next week. I drank 32 oz of water at work in two hours this morning. It must be flare time.....
Winnie