jm630@uiucuxa.CSO.UIUC.EDU (12/10/85)
I wear gas-permeable contact lenses and I use my eyes a lot during the day. Lately, however, I have been having trouble with my eyes being irritated. From the time I wake up to the time I sleep my eyes are *very* red. They also burn when I keep my eyes closed and when I keep my eyes open without blinking. Why do the veins in the eye flare-up making the eye appear red? Is it because there is a significant lack of oxygen to they eyes? What about the eye drops
that 'get the red out'. What do these eye drops actually do? Do they
suppress the veins, leaving the eye without the needed oxygen but making it
look good? Is there anyone who may have answers to these questions? I'd love
to have nice clear eyes. Thankyou.
_____ _____
/ (*) \ / (*) \
\_____/ \_____/ Joe Matthews
University of Illinois
____jm630@uiucuxa.CSO.UIUC.EDU (12/10/85)
Oops, part of my message was lost there:
My eyes have become very irritated and from the beginning of the day to
the end my eyes are *very* red. They also burn alot regardless whether or
not my eyes are closed or open. Why does the eye become red? Is there a
lack of oxygen to the eye existing. The other questions before in the
previous message refer to eye drops that 'get the red out'. Thanks.
_____ _____
/ (*) \ / (*) \ Joe Matthews
\_____/ \_____/
University of Illinois
_____
"I'm tired, but it's a good kind of tired."djb@riccb.UUCP (Dave J. Burris ) (12/12/85)
> My eyes have become very irritated and from the beginning of the day to > the end my eyes are *very* red. They also burn alot regardless whether or > not my eyes are closed or open. Why does the eye become red? Is there a > lack of oxygen to the eye existing. The other questions before in the > previous message refer to eye drops that 'get the red out'. Thanks. > This could be related to an inadequate supply of vitamin A in your diet. My granny had this problem and the doctor actually prescribed a vitamin instead of drugs. Maybe MD's will eventually become more concerned with wholistic approaches rather than pill pushing. -- Dave Burris ..!ihnp4!ihopa!riccb!djb Rockwell Switching Systems, Downers Grove, Il.
suze@terak.UUCP (Suzanne Barnett) (12/13/85)
> > I wear gas-permeable contact lenses and I use my eyes a lot during the day. Lately, however, I have been having trouble with my eyes being irritated. From the time I wake up to the time I sleep my eyes are *very* red. They also burn when I keep my eyes closed and when I keep my eyes open without blinking. Why do the veins in the eye flare-up making the eye appear red? Is it because there is a significant lack of oxygen to they eyes? What about the eye drops > that 'get the red out'. What do these eye drops actually do? Do they > suppress the veins, leaving the eye without the needed oxygen but making it > look good? Is there anyone who may have answers to these questions? I'd love > to have nice clear eyes. Thankyou. Could be that the contacts don't fit right. If they are new or very old, this is highly probable. Could be allergies, could be a cold, could be excessive pollution or dust in the air. Consult your opthamologist. -- Merry Christmas! Suzanne Barnett-Scott uucp: ...{decvax,ihnp4,noao,savax,seismo}!terak!suze CalComp/Sanders Display Products Division 14151 N 76th Street, Scottsdale, AZ 85260 (602) 998-4800
sdyer@bbncc5.UUCP (Steve Dyer) (12/14/85)
>> My eyes have become very irritated and from the beginning of the day to >> the end my eyes are *very* red. They also burn alot regardless whether or >> not my eyes are closed or open. Why does the eye become red? Is there a >> lack of oxygen to the eye existing. The other questions before in the >> previous message refer to eye drops that 'get the red out'. Thanks. >> > This could be related to an inadequate supply of vitamin A in your diet. > My granny had this problem and the doctor actually prescribed a vitamin > instead of drugs. Maybe MD's will eventually become more concerned with > wholistic approaches rather than pill pushing. Hooboy, what a comment here, especially in the light of this guy's sentiments of physician-bashing! I believe vitamins come in pill form. Isn't it equally distasteful to hear this kind of "pill pushing" coming from here, especially when we're talking about someone's vision?? Pretty darn important, and too important to just throw out long-distance recommendations without also making the only recommendation we're qualified to make: to have that person run, not walk, to his eye doctor. It is plain irresponsible to recommend anything else here other than to have this person visit his nearest eye-doctor to determine the REAL cause of his problems. The causes of such eye irritation are legion, especially given that the person is wearing contacts. It could be due to allergy to lens solutions, infection, lack of tears, poor lens fit, and about 10000 other possibilities unrelated to lenses. One doesn't recommend vitamin A or Visine here: either could do more harm by keeping the person from getting real treatment. -- /Steve Dyer {harvard,seismo}!bbnccv!bbncc5!sdyer sdyer@bbncc5.ARPA
chris@umcp-cs.UUCP (Chris Torek) (12/15/85)
In article <606@riccb.UUCP> djb@riccb.UUCP (Dave J. Burris) writes: >> My eyes have become very irritated and from the beginning of the day to >> the end my eyes are *very* red. ... > This could be related to an inadequate supply of vitamin A in your diet. > My granny had this problem and the doctor actually prescribed a vitamin Vitamin A pills? > instead of drugs. Maybe MD's will eventually become more concerned with > wholistic approaches rather than pill pushing. Careful now. Wholly rejecting any one approach `out of hand' is usually a mistake. And if *your* doctor is more interested in selling prescriptions than keeping you well, look around; there are others who are not. -- In-Real-Life: Chris Torek, Univ of MD Comp Sci Dept (+1 301 454 4251) UUCP: seismo!umcp-cs!chris CSNet: chris@umcp-cs ARPA: chris@mimsy.umd.edu
dr@ski.UUCP (David Robins) (12/18/85)
> >> My eyes have become very irritated and from the beginning of the day to > >> the end my eyes are *very* red. They also burn alot regardless whether o > >> not my eyes are closed or open. Why does the eye become red? Is there a > >> lack of oxygen to the eye existing. The other questions before in the > >> previous message refer to eye drops that 'get the red out'. Thanks. > >> > > This could be related to an inadequate supply of vitamin A in your diet. > > My granny had this problem and the doctor actually prescribed a vitamin > > instead of drugs. Maybe MD's will eventually become more concerned with > > wholistic approaches rather than pill pushing. > > also making the only recommendation we're qualified to make: to have that > person run, not walk, to his eye doctor. > > It is plain irresponsible to recommend anything else here other than to > have this person visit his nearest eye-doctor to determine the REAL cause > of his problems. The causes of such eye irritation are legion, especially > given that the person is wearing contacts. It could be due to allergy to > One doesn't recommend vitamin A > or Visine here: either could do more harm by keeping the person from > getting real treatment. I totally agree! While it is true we are using Vitamine A for some cases, it is in the treamtnet of dry eye syndrome, where there is a lack of lubricating tears. The fellow who is studying this in Boston found that *topical* Vitamin A ointment (a research drug) reversed some tear-gland loss. Some docs are trying oral Vit. A to see if there is an effect. Dry eye syndrome is very common, and often gets worse as one gets older. Chronic contact lens use also seems to reduce tear output. All contact lenses need tears for proper operation, especially hard, non-gas permeable lenses. While dry eye sndrome can cause red, irriated eyes, so can many other things, as Steve Dyer pointed out. (a common contact-lens problem!) This also includes CORNEAL ULCERS,^ which can cause blindness if not treated, and infection of the meibomian glands in the eyelids, which can also provoke corneal infections. Allergic problems from the contact lens or the chemicals can also cause red eyes. An ophthalmologist should reeally be consulted to find out what is wrong. A Schirmer tear test can be done, (a simple office test) if no other problems are found, to see if inadequate lubricating tears is the problem. Visine and the other vasoconstrictors make things worse, if the problem is dry eye, because the drugs in it cause further drying. In additon, as pointed out, while it makes the eyes less red (for a time) it may delay proper diagnosis by keeping the person from having it ckecked out. Also, casual use of high-dose Vitamin A can be systemically toxic; overdosing may make the eyes *more* dry. -- ==================================================================== David Robins, M.D. Smith-Kettlewell Institute of Visual Sciences 2232 Webster St; San Francisco CA 94115 415/561-1705 {ihnp4,qantel,dual}!ptsfa!ski!dr The opinions expressed herein do not reflect the opinion of the Institute!