Kickas.org Forums Ankylosing Spondylitis General Discussion #1 AS Web Support Group Eye Question

Hey gang,
I have a question for those of you that have had eye problems related to your AS. I have not and over this weekend I have nearly lost all of the vision in my right eye. It just feels like it is running and mattered but doesn't seem to be. My vision is very blurred in that eye to the point that I can hardly make out this 20 in. monitor. I wear contacts but took them out in hopes it was just a matter of needing to give my eyes a rest and put in fresh contacts. These were only a week old, and I usually get about a month from a set. I am going to try to get in to the optometrist as soon as they are open this morning. Has anyone experienced anything like this? It just scared me because of the rapid onset.

Thanks

Keep Kickin'AS
Chris

Chris,

I am no eye Dr. but it doesnt sound like Iritis to me...does it feel like you have sand in your eye and the white is very red?

Tori started wearing contacts just over a year ago and had the same symptoms as you and she had an eye infection the Dr. gave her an antibiotic eye drops for like a week.

EITHER WAY, get to the eye Dr. ASAP!!!!

Dont mess with your eyes..

Keep us updated,

Lisa

I agree. Don't wait to get checked out. It actually sounds a little like when I got Iritis the first time. It did not hurt, but my vision was very much affected. It looked like the room was full of smoke or fog or something like that. In any case, I think you need to get checked out soon. Your eyes are way to important to take any chances.
Good Luck

I wear contacts and what you are experiencing is something my doc calls iritis. (That is what he said!!) I get it a couple times a year, especially at season change.

GET THEE TO A DOC and quit rubbing them... Easier said than done, eh?

Let us know how it turns out!!
Holly

Hey, Chris:

An ophthalmologist would be better than an optometrist, but I suppose that you could get a fast referral. We are not only subject to iritis, but about three other eye conditions and this could be one of these or something else not as severe and we hope for a speedy resolution for You,

John

YES, regardless whether you think it is iritis or not....go to doc....where I am in Canada, I can go to my walkin clinic and if it is bad my doc can send me to the nearest opthamologist on call in the emergency dept at the hospital.

Do that please! Iritis is the third leading cause of blindness! And you are right to be scared due to the rapid onset, go get it checked right now!

I have had iritis twice, both times it was not particularily painful, but I do have an aggressive form that needs to be dealt with immediately, you may have the same.

Rita

Hey Chris,

Sorry to hear about the eye problem. As John says, it would definitely be best to go to an opthomalogist instead of an optometrist, as the former is a medical doctor who is trained to spot iritis and can also prescribe the meds you will need. If all you have locally is an optometrist, then by all means that is better than nothing, but if you have a choice, choose the optho, as most optometrists aren't even equipped to handle iritis or other serious medical conditions.

As the others said, it sure does sound like it could be iritis. While many people do experience pain when they get iritis, some severe, there are those of us who don't experience any pain with iritis. I think maybe once or twice my eyes have experienced a few sharp pains when I had iritis, but the vast majority of the time I just get the loss of vision and the sensitivity to light (and the redness, of course--that seems to be unavoidable). Honestly, I hope for your sake that it turns out to be either something very mild or, given a choice, an eye infection caused by your contacts instead of iritis. The former is easier to treat and has fewer long-term implications for an AS patient.

Good luck, and keep us posted.

Brad

Yes I would have gone to an Opthomologist but down here in PoDunk its an Optometrist an MD or the Vet. And sometimes the vet is the best option.

Any way it turned out to be a reaction to my new contacts. Seems the manufacturer changed the recipe and the new ones don't have as much water in them. So I am on drops to clear up the reaction and go back Thurs. for a follow up and to try to find a contact that better fits the bill.

Thanks for the help.

Keep Kickin'AS
Chris

Chris,

I am so glad that it wasn't Iritis..it didn't sound like it was to me but you never know.

It doesn't matter if you are 12 or 112 even with contacts you have to be careful.

Tori once had a pair that had only been in for like 3 days and it split in half in her eye part came out the other half I had to go in her eye and get it out talk about scary.

Im so glad that your eyes are going to be ok,

Lisa

Chris, I'm glad to hear you got checked out and it was nothing worse. Contacts can be changed, eyes can't.

Many hugs,