The eyes and Autoimmune Disease

Hi thank you for this information. I must have missed it before. My referral to a rheumy after 3-4 years of multisymptoms was prompted by very extreme uveitis with my iris attached to the pupil in my eye. I left it to get so bad (it was my 3rd episode) because the Gabapentin I take masks my pain. So beware if you are on pain killers because I really wasn't aware of how serious it was. My experience was very scary when they told me it was severe I suppose I was put off by the attitudes I have encountered when various health professionals made me feel it was all in my mind. Anyway I now have only 2 weeks to go for my appointment with a rheumy so please everyone keep your fingers crossed that they will help me as my pain has been excruciating whilst on holiday last week. This info is so reassuring to me as I always need to be convinced that I am not imagining my symptoms. I really need to be assertive but its so hard wen I get into the consulting room.

re punctal occlusion

sheira;549030 said:

Has anyone had this procedure? I've been telling my rheumie for months that my eyes were bad and it was only after a 3 week ( now 9 week) conjunctivitis that i got sent to an eye specialist who said i need to have it done or i could go blind!

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Punctal occlusion - yes, I've had it done several times. It basically involves having a tiny silicone plug put into each tear duct, to stop what tears/drops you have in your eye draining away. It doesn't hurt (your consultant should put in anaesthetic drops), but just feels a bit odd. Apparently, if you have enough tears and they can't drain away, your eyes can leak tears a bit, but they can remove the plugs if that happens. Didn't happen to me. What has happened is that my corneal scarring has healed up and my eyes are less sore.

Btw, I don't see on your meds list that you have tried Clinitas eye drops. My consultant recommended them to me when I was using Viscotears and Celluvisc. I tried Clinitas drops instead and they're soooo much better. Plus, as an added bonus, I could go back to wearing contact lenses, as the drops are OK to use with lenses .

My reply's a year late for you, I guess, but I hope this helps someone.