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Medical Forum / Diseases and Disorders / Diabetes / April 2006More Tests From the Retina Man
Hello dear friends, Well, I have returned from more testing pertaining to my eyes, and I have a bit of news that all diabetics may find interesting. To be brief, after today's flouroscopic dye study, my doctor is saying my condition may, after all, be related to the diabetes, but that it is not the usual kind of retinopathy that he sees in diabetics. My condition is somewhat rare. What happened was that a major blood vessel in the retina appears to have shut down for an unknown time, resulting in the death of part of the retina. Since then, though, the blocked blood vessel has reopened, so that a normal supply of blood has resumed, although the retina cells originally affected are mostly destroyed, meaning I have little or no central vision in that eye. Why this should be interesting to all diabetics is that this doctor is concerned that the original shutdown of the blood supply to my macula in the right eye looks like the end result of an inflammatory process or a possible autoimmune response that went awry. As some of you may recall, when I was first diagnosed, I was suffering from excruciating pain in my feet and ankles, as well as a frozen shoulder, such that my regular doctor originally thought I had developed rheumatoid arthritis. At that time, the blood workup for the arthritis turned out to be negative, but my fasting blood sugar was 290, with an a1c of 13. When diabetes was confirmed by followup testing, and treatment began, I had horrible visual disturbances, and shortly thereafter, I began to notice some continuing abnormality in the functioning of that right eye, even after the left one had cleared. The foot and ankle pain has gone now, and my shoulder problem is much, much better, but still present. The retina specialist feels there may be a link between the inflammations, the retina casualty, and the diabetes. I shall be going in to the hospital tomorrow, or the next day, for additional tests, including that carotid doppler study and about 8 different blood tests.... Now, I am even being screened for lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, again! ugh! Of course, I shall keep you all posted. Now for the news about my "good" eye..... I have a small cataract, and today, for the first time I was advised that the pressure in that eye was 23. While the retina man said he was not alarmed about it, since it was not necessarily dangerous to have a one-time test result of 23, it is a flag of possible developing glaucoma....:-( Anything over 19 is considered abnormally "high".... Another point of view would be that the pressure in the eyes of a lot of people fluctuate, anyway, although going up to 23 is starting to signal a problem.... So we are just going to have to "keep an eye" on it. In the course of all this, I have learned that diabetics are at more than twice the risk of glaucoma as non-diabetics, and at much greater risk of developing cataracts, as well. Taking a cue from Chris J, I would urge any diabetic, especially the newly diagnosed, to see a retina specialist at the first sign of trouble. While the eyes of most newbies get blurry from changes in internal osmotic pessure caused by adjustment in blood glucose levels, this disease can and does attack the retina through various mechanisms. Don't let what happened to me happen to you, if it can be avoided. Could my retina damage have been avoided? We shall likely never know the answer to that one with certainty, but I would say probably not. At diagnosis, my body was so wracked with the pain of multiple inflammations, I really felt as though I was dying. I just did not realize it was striking my retina, as the damage to the retina was masked from awareness by the blurry vision of the changing osmotic pressure. Wishing you all a good day from the Twilight Zone..... Will, the One-Eyed Pirate, T2 > Hello dear friends, > [quoted text clipped - 61 lines] > > Will, the One-Eyed Pirate, T2 Will, the one-eyed pirate, from the one eared Dave: sorry your vision is botched up on one side and you've got a potential problem on the other side, but hey can keep glaucoma under control these days. and cataracts are 100% fixable. A new lens and you are good to go. YOu might want to look into the pros/cons of waiting for the cataract surgery. I've forgotten what Mary told me about that. Perhaps tonight she'll write to you. Dave > Will, the one-eyed pirate, from the one eared Dave: sorry your vision > is botched up on one side and you've got a potential problem on the [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > Dave Thanks, Dave... As I always say, if we live long enough, and sooner or later, something alwyas goes wrong with everyone. This is just one of my things to go wrong. Sorry about your ear, by the way. I did not ralize you had such profound hearing loss on one side. Any idea of why it just hit on one side? My doc does not seem very worried about the cataract for now, and he says when the time comes, he will take care of it, with no problem. I happened to be sitting next to a very good friend who had an appointment with the same doctor this morning, and he told me about his cataract surgery last year..... He is delighted with the results! Sad to say, he also has a messed up retina in one eye from, you guessed it, an occluded/bulging vein in his retina that threatens to destroy the macula..... His situation is not as catastrophic as mine, apparently, and he is having some sort of steroid injections into that eye in the hope that some of his vision can be saved. My friend is not diabetic, by the way, so that just goes to show that while we are at greater risk of these problems than non-diabetics, others go blind also from a wholle host of causes. Hope you are having a good one in California... We are having seriously severe thunderstorms right now... Pretty typical for April, I would say. Will, T2 >>Will, the one-eyed pirate, from the one eared Dave: sorry your vision >>is botched up on one side and you've got a potential problem on the [quoted text clipped - 29 lines] > > Will, T2 I'm deaf on one side due to surgery for an acoustic neuroma 10 years ago. The surgery killed the nerve to the brain, so even though my ear works, no signal gets to the brain. such is life! It's been raining all day long and more expected for the entire week. I'm sick of this. I want sunshine! :) Dave > I'm deaf on one side due to surgery for an acoustic neuroma 10 years > ago. The surgery killed the nerve to the brain, so even though my ear > works, no signal gets to the brain. such is life! Sorry to hear of the acoustic neuroma, Dave. I just looked it up.... That must have been a horrible ordeal to endure! Lucky you still have the other side working...... Well, our rain seems to be over for now, but there is another line of thunderstorms out there that will move in in a little while. It is a nice and partly sunny 66 degrees right now:-) Will, T2 >>I'm deaf on one side due to surgery for an acoustic neuroma 10 years >>ago. The surgery killed the nerve to the brain, so even though my ear [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > > Will, T2 Well, it wasn't exactly my FAVORITE surgery! When I came out of surgery, like all other AN patients I had ZERO balance. I couldn't stand up w/o help. Remember how you feel when you spin around fast to make yourself dizzy and then you'd fall over? that's what it was like for me for many days. Eventually, the brain relearns how to balance with the remaining functional side. I don't know what would happen if both ears had neuromas, (bilateral), as far as one's balance is concerned. My head was shaved on one side like you see for brain surgery, and a huge incision was made behind my ear. spinal fluid leaked out of my nose (what a taste!) due to leakage where they tried to seal up the hole they drilled through the mastoid bone. Luckily in about a week, the leakage stopped. I was worried my brain would go dry. :) It took a few months before I could walk down the sidewalk without looking like I was drunk. The worst part of the ordeal was the false hope that the doctor gave me by telling me my hearing was intact right after I came out of recovery. I couldn't tell if I could hear because of the huge bandage over my ear. When it came off, I was horrified to realize I was deaf. The damned doctor told me my hearing might come back after the swelling went down. He kept up that charade for more than a couple of months. Needless to say, I'm totally deaf on that side , and have been since the surgery 10 years ago. I've had a couple of MRI's through the years to be sure there's not another neuroma growing on the good side. So far, so good. I'd hate to be completely deaf. man, the midwest has been hit hard with tornados. I used to live in that part of the country and have a healthy respect for funnel clouds. Dave > It took a few months before I could walk down the sidewalk without > looking like I was drunk. The worst part of the ordeal was the false [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > than a couple of months. Needless to say, I'm totally deaf on that side > , and have been since the surgery 10 years ago. You have my sincerest sympathy about that ordeal, Dave. It must have been horrible.... Just please take care of your good ear. Losing one of two ears is probably a little like losing an eye.... Your sense of having a spare is suddenly taken away, not to mention having to compensate and relearn certain things. One thing that is hard for me right now is depth percepetion, and the feeling that I simply do not see things that may be happening toward my right.... For instance, it is really wierd to look at the headlight of an oncoming car, and not see it. Seems like the weather all over the world is getting progressively more severe. I wonder if it just seems that way, because of better news coverage, or if it really is getting worse, perhaps because of global warming. It is a gorgeous day outside here in the East, right now. Will, T2 >>It took a few months before I could walk down the sidewalk without >>looking like I was drunk. The worst part of the ordeal was the false [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > > Will, T2 I baby my remaining hearing, Will. I wear ear protection when using loud equipment in my shop. I no longer play my music loud, especially when wearing headphones. It's gotta be tough driving w/o depth perception. I don't know how Mary gets along as well as she does with monovision (she had lasik that made one eye for distance and the other for reading--that wouldn't work for me) Send some nice weather our way. We are scheduled for 5 more days of rain. Dave >> arming. >> [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > >Dave Please keep guarding that remaining hearing, Dave. I cannot imagine a world without sound or beauteous music... Sound and the appreciation of music are part of what defines our essential humanity, I think. Too much rain is bad for all living things, except fish and mold.... Will, t2 >> It's gotta be tough driving w/o depth perception. I don't know how Mary >> gets along as well as she does with monovision (she had lasik that made >> one eye for distance and the other for reading--that wouldn't work for me) I have lived with monocular vision all my life because one of my eyes was legally blind at my birth and somewhat crosseyed while the other was normal, so I never grew the nerve thing you need for fusion. The trick with driving without depth perception seems to be that you develop a size-based idea of where things are. But because I know I'm missing something normal people have as far as spatial perception goes, I always leave a huge distance between me and the car in front of me and I wait until nothing is coming when I take left turns. Sometimes that means people behind me honk, but it works. Throughout my adulthood my spouses have always insisted on driving if both of us were in the car, because they find it a bit scary the way I can slam on the brakes when the car in front of me appears to them to be a safe distance away, but to me it looks too close! Still, I've done an awful lot of driving over the years and the accidents I have had have been caused by things like other cars running red lights, or brake failure on ice with a car abandoned at the bottom of the icy hill. Knock on wood the last accident I had was 14 years ago and I drove both my kids back from activities and sports 14 miles EACH a day for much of their high school careers. You'll probably have to start moving your head more to pick up the part of your visual field you're missing, too. But bottom line is that you should be able to get by with one eye once your brain adapts. And the visual cortex adapts extremely well Remember that in a psychology experiment where subjects were given glasses to wear with prisms that made everything look upside down within some short period of time the people with prisms were seeing everything rightside up again and when they took the prisms off, everything looked upside down! So the message is that our brain is optimized to do what it can with what it has, visually. --Jenny http://www.phlaunt.com/diabetes Diabetes Info http://www.alt-support-diabetes.org/newlydiagnosed.htm Get Your Blood Sugar Under Control > >> It's gotta be tough driving w/o depth perception. I don't know how Mary > >> gets along as well as she does with monovision (she had lasik that made [quoted text clipped - 41 lines] > http://www.alt-support-diabetes.org/newlydiagnosed.htm Get Your Blood > Sugar Under Control My husband is blind in one eye, has been since he was 7 years old. Was shoved into a coat hook at school.  SignatureSuzi A1c 6.4 T2 DX 10/2002 Glucophage 2 x 1000mg Lipitor 20mg (3 days a week), Enalapril 20mg 30 minutes walks 7 days a week My oldest daughter was born profoundly deaf in both ears. She has a great life forty years later, working at CSD in Fremont. Her deafness was caused by German Measles when I was pregnant with her, so her four girls are all hearing. I would imagine it would be easier to be born deaf, than to go deaf later though. Hopefully, everything stays good with your good side. -- Cheri David wrote in message ... >I've had a couple of MRI's through the years to be sure there's not >another neuroma growing on the good side. So far, so good. I'd hate to >be completely deaf. >Dave > My oldest daughter was born profoundly deaf in both ears. She has a > great life forty years later, working at CSD in Fremont. Her deafness [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > >>Dave Gee, Cheri, how did she get through school and life not being able to hear at all? Did she go to a school for the deaf? Sorry to hear your daughter had such a problem. We never think much about what we've got until it's suddenly taken away. I didn't know about tumors in the head (related to hearing) when I went to the doctor. I thought it would be some "minor" problem (I didn't really think it through, I just never expected to be told I had an A.N. which could leave me blind, disfigured, and deaf from it's removal. Luckily "all" I got was deafness from the surgery.) Dave Yes, she started Grover Cleveland in Stockton when she was 21/2, then to the CSD Berkely five days a week, and then to the new school in Fremont. Not to brag or anything, but she was a wonderful athlete, and went on to Northridge. She travelled, made her own way, and never really let it hold her back. She married a deaf man, and has four children, which was my biggest worry, that she wouldn't hear them crying etc., but she got all those devices where the lights flash and things like that, and they learned sign language before they could talk, which I understand is easier to learn when you're a baby than speech is. She is a counselor at CSD in Fremont where they live, and her husband worked for Sun Systems in computing for years before being laid off, he works for another company now, and both of her oldest daughters do interpreting, one at a hospital, and one at a youth facility. As you know there is a large population of deaf in the Fremont Area, and most of them lead pretty normal lives. Sorry this is long. :-) -- Cheri David wrote in message ... >Gee, Cheri, how did she get through school and life not being able to >hear at all? Did she go to a school for the deaf? Sorry to hear your >daughter had such a problem. > Yes, she started Grover Cleveland in Stockton when she was 21/2, then to > the CSD Berkely five days a week, and then to the new school in [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] >>hear at all? Did she go to a school for the deaf? Sorry to hear your >>daughter had such a problem. Cheri, I can see why you are so proud! your daughter has done exceptionally well for herself! Your post reminded me that there was a deaf couple living behind us that had a flashing light for the doorbell, alarm clock, etc. I remember as a child, my folks had an alarm clock that flashed a small lamp to wake them up. They have normal hearing; they just liked the light instead of noise. BTW, how bad was the crime in Stockton when she was little? I looked into buying a house there until I got wind of how bad the crime rate is. I dropped that idea in a flash. And please don't apologize for the length. I coulda/woulda read more. <g> Dave The crime rate in Stockton is, and always has been...terrible. I think Stockton is famous for it's crime rate all across the country, not just in California. You were smart not to move there. :-) -- Cheri David wrote in message ... >BTW, how bad was the crime in Stockton when she was little? I looked >into buying a house there until I got wind of how bad the crime rate is. >I dropped that idea in a flash. >Dave >Yes, she started Grover Cleveland in Stockton when she was 21/2, then to >the CSD Berkely five days a week, and then to the new school in [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] >know there is a large population of deaf in the Fremont Area, and most >of them lead pretty normal lives. Sorry this is long. :-) Not long. Fascinating, wonderful and inspirational reading how she and her husband, and you, not only overcame adversity but succeeded in your lives. Cheers, Alan, T2, Australia. d&e, metformin 2x500mg SignatureEverything in Moderation - Except Laughter. : > I'm deaf on one side due to surgery for an acoustic neuroma 10 years : > ago. The surgery killed the nerve to the brain, so even though my ear : > works, no signal gets to the brain. such is life! : Sorry to hear of the acoustic neuroma, Dave. I just looked it up.... That : must have been a horrible ordeal to endure! Lucky you still have the other : side working...... : Well, our rain seems to be over for now, but there is another line of : thunderstorms out there that will move in in a little while. It is a nice : and partly sunny 66 degrees right now:-) : Will, T2 My husband had reatment for acoustic neuroma about 6 or 7 yers ago. He had the Gamma Knife, a radiation technique tht used 215 sources of radiation into the brain that focus on teh neuroma, killing it. It does not require the delicate surgery that was formerly, the only way to sto this insidious growth from ultimately, totally robbing a person, not nl of hi=hir hearing, but also hir balance. Syd's hearing had already been lost in, what had been his good ear, which was the way the neuroma was first diagnosed by an alert ear doctor who sent him to teh neurosurgeon who performed the Gamma Knife treatment. So now, Syd hers badly from his remaining ear and I see badly from my remaining eye. I say that between us we are one good person:-) Theoretically, hering could be saved IF the neuroma was found before it had damaged the nerve sufficiently to take the hearing, but I don't know how you could diagnose that without giving peole some kind of routine MRIs of the head to find a reletively rare condition. Wendy > : > I'm deaf on one side due to surgery for an acoustic neuroma 10 years > : > ago. The surgery killed the nerve to the brain, so even though my ear [quoted text clipped - 28 lines] > > Wendy Wendy, I was given the option of the gamma knife procedure, but the doctor thought it wasn't my best option. I can't remember WHY he said that, but I think it had to do with a "regrowth" issue. Don't quote me though, as it's been 10 years. My A.N. was the size of a small pea and had just barely begun to affect my hearing. I noticed a problem hearing on the phone and that's what prompted me to seek medical help. Little did I know that slightly diminished hearing would result in major surgery and deafness. Sorry you guys have got eye and ear problems too, Wendy. Dave : > : > I'm deaf on one side due to surgery for an acoustic neuroma 10 years : > : > ago. The surgery killed the nerve to the brain, so even though my ear [quoted text clipped - 37 lines] : did I know that slightly diminished hearing would result in major : surgery and deafness. : Sorry you guys have got eye and ear problems too, Wendy. : Dave Syd had been suffering from gradual hearing loss and was wearing two hearing aids. It seemed to have been from a combination of heredity and playing trumpet for many years in orchestras sitting in from of the french horns and trombones. this w sall in teh days befrore amplification in theaters adn concertc (classical) he experienced a sudden and total loss of hering in what had been his better ear, so it seems to have come on quite suddenly. After his firt MRI he has watched and reMRI'd every yer as it seemed not to be growing. Itwas only after it started growign and reached a certain size that the surgical options were dentioned. As he was a very healthy, low risk 77 year old it was felt that he shoudl take whatever treatment was best(surgery was a defiite option). He went to a fantstic neurosurgeonn, who he still sees every year for anMRI an check-up. He ws the one who advised teh Gamma Knife adn it seems to have been the best all round fo r/Syd. We were most worried about possible dmage to the facial nerves, as syd , alathough no longer layig the trumpet, plays the recorder adn sings in our summer synagogue where he has taught himself to lead the sservices. To loose that , as well as the ability to enoy listening to concerts or music on the radio, (he often hears only the lowwer voices, filling in and singing the higher ones)was too much to contemplate. All the reading I did about this on the web, including an article int ethe Journal of Neurosurgery (that was a toughy) indicated that the Gamma Kife was the way to go. Today, at almost 85, Syd still plays the recorder and does some teachin and still leads services in the summer and the neuroma seems to be geting smaller and smaller each year. he keeps saying he shuldn't bother with teh annual visits, but I encourage them, as I was to see that MRI , not only with the smaller dead, neuroma, but the other nerve to make sure. I believe tht we are fortunate to live in New York City, where we have access to so many first line specialists. Both his neurosrgeon and my macula super specialist seem to be both tops in their field and very nice guys, who are willing to explain all the details and answer all teh questions. We had a session that lasted well over an hur before we made the descision regarding the Gamma Kife with much patient answering of our many questions and many expllanations and diagrams to illustrate what was going on. Wendy > So now, Syd hers badly from his > remaining ear and I see badly from my remaining eye. I say that between > us we are one good person:-) Wendy, I know what you mean, but I would say you seem like a very good person, all by yourself:-) Will, T2 > : > I'm deaf on one side due to surgery for an acoustic neuroma 10 years > : > ago. The surgery killed the nerve to the brain, so even though my ear > : > works, no signal gets to the brain. such is life! > : Sorry to hear of the acoustic neuroma, Dave. I just looked it up.... That > : must have been a horrible ordeal to endure! Lucky you still have the other > : side working...... > : Well, our rain seems to be over for now, but there is another line of > : thunderstorms out there that will move in in a little while. It is a nice > : and partly sunny 66 degrees right now:-) > : Will, T2 > My husband had reatment for acoustic neuroma about 6 or 7 yers ago. He > had the Gamma Knife, a radiation technique tht used 215 sources of [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > remaining ear and I see badly from my remaining eye. I say that between > us we are one good person:-) > Theoretically, hering could be saved IF the neuroma was found before it > had damaged the nerve sufficiently to take the hearing, but I don't know > how you could diagnose that without giving peole some kind of routine MRIs > of the head to find a reletively rare condition. The neuroma causes progressive damage, and can be picked up in the early stages. I'm losing hearing in one ear, plus some other episodic ear and balance problems, and was sent for an MRI scan just in case it was a neuroma. It wasn't. SignatureChris Malcolm cam@infirmatics.ed.ac.uk +44 (0)131 651 3445 DoD #205 IPAB, Informatics, JCMB, King's Buildings, Edinburgh, EH9 3JZ, UK [http://www.dai.ed.ac.uk/homes/cam/] > You >might want to look into the pros/cons of waiting for the cataract >surgery. I've forgotten what Mary told me about that. Perhaps tonight >she'll write to you. I have cataracts developing in both eyes, and my ophthalmologist has told me that we should basically wait until I can't stand the annoyance any more. The caveat is that the surgery should be done sooner, if there are other problems, such as untreated retinopathy, macular edema, etc., that will require the use of the laser. That's because the eye's lens has to be clear for the laser to work properly. Since I had the laser treatment for retinopathy 20 years ago, and my eyes are stable in that regard, that's not an issue for me. > To be brief, after today's flouroscopic dye study, my doctor is saying my > condition may, after all, be related to the diabetes, but that it is not the [quoted text clipped - 54 lines] > > Wishing you all a good day from the Twilight Zone..... Sorry for all the medical appointments and vision problems and just the @!#$* of it all, Will. :-( Sounds like you have a thoughtful doc, though. Susan > Wishing you all a good day from the Twilight Zone..... > > Sorry for all the medical appointments and vision problems and just the > @!#$* of it all, Will. :-( > > Sounds like you have a thoughtful doc, though. Thanks, Susan... Yes, I do have a very thoughtful doc, and so far, I like him a lot. He is far better than the first one I went to.... Will, T2 >> Wishing you all a good day from the Twilight Zone..... >> [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > Thanks, Susan... Yes, I do have a very thoughtful doc, and so far, I > like him a lot. He is far better than the first one I went to.... Well with eye problems you don't want to muck around. A second opinion is always better than suffering potential blindness in the future. Even "mild" :) diabetes is nothing to be fooled with. No one knows who is going to hit the complication jackpot and at what level of bg control. Better to be safe than sorry when it comes to having an extended diabetes team. Mine is only me, the GP, the endo and the eye doc. And I hope that's where it stays :) >Hello dear friends, > >Well, I have returned from more testing pertaining to my eyes, and I have a >bit of news that all diabetics may find interesting. > >Will, the One-Eyed Pirate, T2 Will, you sure are having a time of it. I hope he can find some way - any way to help you with this. I too have cataracts in both eyes, but every year when I go for my eye exam he says they are not nearly bad enough to operate on yet. He just cautions me to always wear sunglasses and a baseball cap or broad brimmed hat when outside, even on cloudy days. Laurie and I are praying for you my brother. SignatureGrandpa Chuck -ô¿ô- ~ The following information is given with the utmost respect for the armed forces and civilians who have died in the current war in Iraq. According to http://icasualties.org/oif/ The number of Americans killed in Iraq as of April 02, 2006 is 2,336. Americans wounded = more than 16,774 United Kingdom = 103 Other = 105 Iraqi deaths are probably in excess of 100,000. Today, April 3, 2006 It has been 1067 days since Bush declared, "Mission Accomplished in Iraq." And some people still believe what he says. Thought to Ponder . . . Recognizing someone else's human dignity cannot cost you your own. > I hope he can find some way - any way to help you with this. > I too have cataracts in both eyes, but every year when I go for my eye > exam he says they are not nearly bad enough to operate on yet. He just > cautions me to always wear sunglasses and a baseball cap or broad > brimmed hat when outside, even on cloudy days. Thank you so much, Chuck. All I can do is play out the hand I have been dealt and hope for the best. It does seem like the Twilight Zone sometimes, though,in several ways.... and in one big literal way. Not being able to see well is truly a bummer and something that I did not really expect. Yes, lots of hats and sunglasses are definitely in my future! Take care >> I hope he can find some way - any way to help you with this. >> I too have cataracts in both eyes, but every year when I go for my >> eye exam he says they are not nearly bad enough to operate on yet. >> He just cautions me to always wear sunglasses and a baseball cap or >> broad brimmed hat when outside, even on cloudy days. > > Thank you so much, Chuck. All I can do is play out the hand I have > been dealt and hope for the best. Lol, I never accept that :) All the prayer nay sayers will say otherwise but I totally beleive in it's power to change things. never will I accept the cards I have been dealt. Even with Jasmine, I say it's my "lot" but I don't accept there will never be a change :) It does seem like the Twilight Zone > sometimes na na na na :) I'll be humming that all day now :) though,in several ways.... and in one big literal way. Not > being able to see well is truly a bummer and something that I did not > really expect. Yes, lots of hats and sunglasses are definitely in my > future! But definitely not that white cane!!! >> On 3-Apr-2006, Grandpa Chuck <Grandpa Chuck@B4ME.org> >wrote: [quoted text clipped - 32 lines] > >But definitely not that white cane!!! Hello again, Jan Yes, I concede that prayer, in some unknown and undefinable way, may have the power to affect events in the external world... All I simply say is that I do not know... In the meantime, I advocate doing all we can to constructively take positive action to cope with our situations and make the best of things, whatever the situation. I really think you and I must be very much in agreement in that... :-) If prayer avails, then I am all for it. You are a real symbol of courage for us all, Jan, if you think about it. Thank you for being the wonderful person that you are. I do so much appreciate you, and I have great admiration for you. Not joining the White Cane Toe Tappers, just yet! ;-) Will, T2 Good luck, Will, I hope they get to the bottom of what's going on and that it will be good news (or at least something easily fixable). LQ > Good luck, Will, I hope they get to the bottom of what's going on and > that it will be good news (or at least something easily fixable). > > LQ Thanks so much, LQ.... I have been following your trials and tribulations, as well. I do hope you can get a handle on whatever is the problem. It sounds like RH, but I certainly would not be the one to ask about that. I hope you can get the help you need soon, though. :-) A good start might be to seek out that endo. Take care, Will, T2 I'm sorry about all your problems Will, and hopefully they won't get any worse. Thanks for the information and best to you. -- Cheri wmmckee@cox.net wrote in message ... >Hello dear friends, > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] >usual kind of retinopathy that he sees in diabetics. My condition is >somewhat rare. What happened was that a major blood vessel in the retina Dear Will: I will pray for you (despite recent studies questioning the practice) and hope that you see the world better with the one eye. You help us all by reminding us to be vigilant. Regards H > I will pray for you (despite recent studies questioning the practice) > and hope that you see the world better with the one eye. > > You help us all by reminding us to be vigilant. Thanks, H... This afternoon, I learned the technical name for my diagnosis. It is termed "Branch Retinal Artery Occlusion".... In doing some reading about it, I have discovered that we diabetics are at much greater risk of this happening, although it is a relatively rare condition. Will, T2 bummer Will........ i'm so sorry to hear that this has happened to you i hope they can reverse PART of it at least :-( life just isn't fair at times :-( kate SignatureJoin us in the Diabetic-Talk Chatroom on UnderNet /server irc.undernet.org --- /join #Diabetic-Talk More info: http://www.diabetic-talk.org/ http://www.diabetic-talk.org/freeveggies.htm I have no medical qualifications beyond my own experience. Choose your advisers carefully, because experience can be an expensive teacher. > Thanks, H... This afternoon, I learned the technical name for my diagnosis. > It is termed "Branch Retinal Artery Occlusion".... In doing some reading > about it, I have discovered that we diabetics are at much greater risk of > this happening, although it is a relatively rare condition. > > Will, T2 > bummer Will........ i'm so sorry to hear that this > has happened to you [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > kate Thanks, Kate. Yes it is a bummer, but others in this group have faced things just as bad, and many are living with things far worse.... My own situation could be infinitely worse, and I am grateful that I have enough sight left, so that I can still function. When I think of how Mack has suffered, and poor Wendy, and so many others, I know I am in good company, indeed. I have come to realize it is not what goes wrong with us or what diseases we may have that matters nearly so much as what we do to cope and carry on in the face of our difficulties. I am not planning to fold up anytime soon! :-) I am going to the hospital on Thursday for another round of tests and workups. Hopefully, I shall know more next week, when I have another consultation with the retina man. By the way, Kate, how are your shoulders? I do hope you are looking after yourself.... From one person with a bad shoulder to another, please get your eyes checked :-) Will, T2 > > bummer Will........ i'm so sorry to hear that this > > has happened to you [quoted text clipped - 26 lines] > > Will, T2 just had my eyes checked..... and no retinopathy (thank goodness its been 18 years now) however, my friend with macula degeneration lost her second eye with wet macular degeneration......... the other eye was lost due to a HIGH near sighted index :-( she has a 10 year old son.............. i pray for her kate >> On 3-Apr-2006, "TigerLily" <me@privacy.net> >wrote: [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > >kate I am so very sorry to hear that, Kate. I know it must be a crushing blow for your friend. Does she have a good support system in place? Any helpers on hand? What about the boy? Please let me know.... Glad to hear that you are well on top of your situation with the eyes, Kate... You never said,...how are the shoulders this week? Remember, you have to really baby them for months. That much I know. Once I resolved never to lift anything heavier than 20 lbs. and NEVER try to lift anything of any weight, whatever, over my head, mine slowly started to improve..... Will, T2 my friend is devastated with going functionally totally blind (she still has some periferal vision and if the documents she is looking at are printed in size 18 font, she can 'make out' what they say.............. but it's a long and arduous process for her her workplace told her to take a couple of weeks off work......... that didn't make her feel anymore comfortable......... so she's thinking of disability if her eye dr will sign for it for her my shoulder has to be babied to the degree that i can't even lift my arm all the way up, Will... the right arm is getting better though and i can lift that one up i guess frozen shoulder is nothing when you compare it to the problems that it could be........ this is just an annoyance, that i hope will clear up sooner than it did for the right arm (over 1 yr and about 6 months and still having ROM problems) kate SignatureJoin us in the Diabetic-Talk Chatroom on UnderNet /server irc.undernet.org --- /join #Diabetic-Talk More info: http://www.diabetic-talk.org/ http://www.diabetic-talk.org/freeveggies.htm I have no medical qualifications beyond my own experience. Choose your advisers carefully, because experience can be an expensive teacher. > >> On 3-Apr-2006, "TigerLily" <me@privacy.net> > >wrote: [quoted text clipped - 36 lines] > > Will, T2 > my shoulder has to be babied to the degree that i > can't even lift my arm all the way up, Will... the > right arm is getting better though and i can lift > that one up Hello Kate, I know what you mean about ROM problems. At one point, I could not put my arm up at all, either. Just reaching for a box of tissues was excruciatingly painful. Now the pain is mostly gone, unless I forget and reach too far, or suddenly move that arm.... Slowly, with some easy exercises, which I do gingerly, I am getting some ROM back, but my good arm has to delicately help the bad one, in order to get my hand behind my back.... You just have to baby those painful frozen shoulders, as you know.... I think I am going to be referred to a rheumatologist before long, so maybe I can get some better treatment that may prevent these inflammations in the future. My current regular doctor, who is a board certified family practice man, just does not seem to have the expertise to manage my situation very well.... I expect I shall also be sent to an endo or an internist, the way the retina man is talking.... He has also mentioned the words cardiologist and surgeon, depending upon what turns up in the carotid arteries. I once spent nearly a week in an ICU with a viral infection of the pericardium that was also affecting my heart, and I have absolutely no desire to return. A fellow cannot even get any sleep in an ICU. Do you ever feel as though you are in the middle of a total body breakdown.... When everything goes to hell at once? Will, T2 <wmmckee@cox.net> wrote in message news:pnxYf.7852 > Do you ever feel as though you are in the middle of a total body > breakdown.... When everything goes to hell at once? > > Will, T2 lets just say that i feel every minute of my age :-( sigh kate > <wmmckee@cox.net> wrote in message news:pnxYf.7852 > [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > sigh > kate Y'know, I thought 40-45 was still youthful. 45-50 feels like 20 years. Susan > x-no-archive: yes > [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > > Susan EXACTLY ! ! ! and 49-50 is the icing on the cake > EXACTLY ! ! ! and 49-50 is the icing on the cake More like the sh.t on the shoe, if you ask me. ;-) Susan LOL, getting ready to turn 60 soon, and there's no "shoe" involved. ;-) -- Cheri >More like the sh.t on the shoe, if you ask me. ;-) > >Susan > LOL, getting ready to turn 60 soon, and there's no "shoe" involved. ;-) Well, congrats, and happy damned birthday, Granny! ;-D. Susan Yep, still waiting for that great grandaughter to be born. She's two weeks late now. I know I have lots of grandkids, but it's still hard to get my head around the "great grandma." My grandaughter said she thinks the baby will call me granny. Whatever. LOL -- Cheri >Well, congrats, and happy damned birthday, Granny! ;-D. > >Susan > Yep, still waiting for that great grandaughter to be born. She's two > weeks late now. I know I have lots of grandkids, but it's still hard to > get my head around the "great grandma." My grandaughter said she thinks > the baby will call me granny. Whatever. LOL Not "venerable ancestor?" ;-) Priscilla >LOL, getting ready to turn 60 soon, and there's no "shoe" involved. ;-) > >-- >Cheri I'll be sixty next birthday. However, I made the decision when I was 55 that I was counting down from there - so that each year I got physically younger. In some ways, with diet and exercise and other things I'm much fitter, so I have been reversing things. But only because I was so terribly unfit at decision time:-) Of course, swmbo reckons I started the cerebral part of that reverse countdown when I was 35, so now I'm an 11yo. Cheers, Alan, T2, Australia. d&e, metformin 2x500mg SignatureEverything in Moderation - Except Laughter. LOL, good for you Alan! As I recall 11 was a wonderful age. :-) -- Cheri Alan S wrote in message ... >I'll be sixty next birthday. However, I made the decision >when I was 55 that I was counting down from there - so that [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] >-- >Everything in Moderation - Except Laughter. lol............ touche ! ! ! > x-no-archive: yes > [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > Susan >Now the pain is mostly gone, unless I forget and reach too far, or >suddenly move that arm.... Yep. That's the one that really gets your attention. Will, I have to hand it to you. All the rest - and frozen shoulder too? You're an inspiration in your attitude. Cheers, Alan, T2, Australia. d&e, metformin 2x500mg SignatureEverything in Moderation - Except Laughter. >>Now the pain is mostly gone, unless I forget and reach too far, or >>suddenly move that arm.... [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] >Cheers, Alan, T2, Australia. >d&e, metformin 2x500mg Thanks, Alan... You, Quentin, and others here, have had to cope with far worse, in my view. We each have our work cut out for us in different ways. To my way of thinking of things, laughing beats crying and self pity, and I do try to stay positive every day. The best way I know to do that is by trying to help others and do what I know is the right thing for my own health and sanity, with regard to diet, excercise, staying mentally active, and all the rest of it. I simply refuse to fold up and give up. Actually, I think you stand for the same philosophical views in this regard, and I count you as a real inspiration to me. When I think about it, there are so many here in asd who have had similar, or worse, challenges.... I count it as one of the best days of my life that I discovered this group. Will, T2 Yes, and we count ourselves very lucky that you discovered the group as well. :-) -- Cheri W.M.McKee wrote in message <57263213ktithb4jmo4lqlggd80gchln6l@4ax.com>... >When I think about it, there are so many here in asd who have had >similar, or worse, challenges.... I count it as one of the best days >of my life that I discovered this group. > >Will, T2 > my shoulder has to be babied to the degree that i > can't even lift my arm all the way up, Will... the > right arm is getting better though and i can lift > that one up Hello Kate, I know what you mean about ROM problems. At one point, I could not put my arm up at all, either. Just reaching for a box of tissues was excruciatingly painful. Now the pain is mostly gone, unless I forget and reach too far, or suddenly move that arm.... Slowly, with some easy exercises, which I do gingerly, I am getting some ROM back, but my good arm has to delicately help the bad one, in order to get my hand behind my back.... You just have to baby those painful frozen shoulders, as you know.... I think I am going to be referred to a rheumatologist before long, so maybe I can get some better treatment that may prevent these inflammations in the future. My current regular doctor, who is a board certified family practice man, just does not seem to have the expertise to manage my situation very well.... I expect I shall also be sent to an endo or an internist, the way the retina man is talking.... He has also mentioned the words cardiologist and surgeon, depending upon what turns up in the carotid arteries. I once spent nearly a week in an ICU with a viral infection of the pericardium that was also affecting my heart, and I have absolutely no desire to return. A fellow cannot even get any sleep in an ICU. Do you ever feel as though you are in the middle of a total body breakdown.... When everything goes to hell at once? Will, T2 > my shoulder has to be babied to the degree that i > can't even lift my arm all the way up, Will... the > right arm is getting better though and i can lift > that one up Hello Kate, Sorry I seem to have botched my last attempt to send this to you, so here goes again. I apologize if you get it twice. I know what you mean about ROM problems. At one point, I could not put my arm up at all, either. Just reaching for a box of tissues was excruciatingly painful. Now the pain is mostly gone, unless I forget and reach too far, or suddenly move that arm.... Slowly, with some easy exercises, which I do gingerly, I am getting some ROM back, but my good arm has to delicately help the bad one, in order to get my hand behind my back.... You just have to baby those painful frozen shoulders, as you know.... I think I am going to be referred to a rheumatologist before long, so maybe I can get some better treatment that may prevent these inflammations in the future. My current regular doctor, who is a board certified family practice man, just does not seem to have the expertise to manage my situation very well.... I expect I shall also be sent to an endo or an internist, the way the retina man is talking.... He has also mentioned the words cardiologist and surgeon, depending upon what turns up in the carotid arteries. I once spent nearly a week in an ICU with a viral infection of the pericardium that was also affecting my heart, and I have absolutely no desire to return. A fellow cannot even get any sleep in an ICU. Do you ever feel as though you are in the middle of a total body breakdown?.... When everything goes to hell at once? Will, T2 > however, my friend with macula degeneration lost > her second eye with wet macular > degeneration......... the other eye was lost due > to a HIGH near sighted index You can lose an eye to a high near-sighted index? How does that happen? My left eye is -10.50 spherical, and still climbing, even though I'm now 63. It's also my best eye, because even though it has the worst short sight, it can resolve significantly higher detail than the right. Damn it, it's my *favourite* eye! SignatureChris Malcolm cam@infirmatics.ed.ac.uk +44 (0)131 651 3445 DoD #205 IPAB, Informatics, JCMB, King's Buildings, Edinburgh, EH9 3JZ, UK [http://www.dai.ed.ac.uk/homes/cam/] her eyes are in the -12 to -14 range (so are my partner's eyes) and you develop macular degeneration of the eye (dry) ....... or the cornea starts to separate from the eye ball :-( kate SignatureJoin us in the Diabetic-Talk Chatroom on UnderNet /server irc.undernet.org --- /join #Diabetic-Talk More info: http://www.diabetic-talk.org/ http://www.diabetic-talk.org/freeveggies.htm I have no medical qualifications beyond my own experience. Choose your advisers carefully, because experience can be an expensive teacher. > > however, my friend with macula degeneration lost > > her second eye with wet macular [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > short sight, it can resolve significantly higher detail than the > right. Damn it, it's my *favourite* eye! : however, my friend with macula degeneration lost : her second eye with wet macular : degeneration......... the other eye was lost due : to a HIGH near sighted index Kate Where are you and your friend located? If she can get to NYC I can reccomend he best in the field for wet macular degeneration, with new and experimental treatments. It may be too late, but a consult wouldn't hurt. contact me privately, if she is interested I might also be able to call my doc to get her a more local contact he woudl know about. Wendy she's been down to an 'expert' in Seattle to see what studies she can qualify for the Dr here did a number of laser shots to the wet macular degeneration eye the dry macular degeneration eye is essentially blind totally and he says there is no treatment for that the expert in Seattle didn't have a lot to add to her prognosis either :-( thanks for thinking of her though....... i just read about some retinal replacement thing that will send signals to the retinal nerve to 'cause' pictures to form....... apparently this is only available in the US and a few other place, but not Canada right now............ she's hoping they refine the techniques and that it becomes available in Canada......... if not, she will go to the US for the treatment kate SignatureJoin us in the Diabetic-Talk Chatroom on UnderNet /server irc.undernet.org --- /join #Diabetic-Talk More info: http://www.diabetic-talk.org/ http://www.diabetic-talk.org/freeveggies.htm I have no medical qualifications beyond my own experience. Choose your advisers carefully, because experience can be an expensive teacher. > : however, my friend with macula degeneration lost > : her second eye with wet macular [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > > Wendy : she's been down to an 'expert' in Seattle to see : what studies she can qualify for : the Dr here did a number of laser shots to the wet : macular degeneration eye : the dry macular degeneration eye is essentially : blind totally and he says there is no treatment : for that : the expert in Seattle didn't have a lot to add to : her prognosis either :-( : thanks for thinking of her though....... i just : read about some retinal replacement thing that [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] : available in Canada......... if not, she will go : to the US for the treatment : kate So far, from wha tmy doctor has said, these don't work and can cause yu to loose the peripheral vision I still have in my triple hemorhaged left eye. Lasar may well have caused my hemhorhages in that left eye some 7 years ago so I have refused them over the yers for th right eye. They did use a low level(non-burning )lasar in conjunction with a photsensative chemical injected into my system for the photo-dynamic treatment which was fairly successful for me when used in conjuntion with a steriod injection into the ee. .I currently am stable at 20/100 in the right eye for corrected vision for distance after having 3 avastin treatments injected into the eye. The Avastin tretmen, is an off-label use of the drug used for metastastic colon cancer that shrinks up the blood vessels that feed the cancer. In the cse of wet macular degeneration, it dries up the blood vessels behind the macula which are causing the trouble when injected in tiny amounts into the eye. It has only been in use since June and Medicare won't cover the shot itself:-( There is a new drug that should be out in June or so that is made from a fration of the Avastin molecule, that should be covered, so we all will be switched to that IF is works as well. So far, people have been stabele for up to 7 months on Avastinafter three monthly injections, which is as long as it has been in use. This drug is being used by a group of doctors around the country who are all trading information about it with each other. it has not been used in clinical trials, hence the lack of coverage. I don 't believe it is in general use, but there might be someone in your area that is using it and I could ask my doctor for a reference. He has been kind enough to get me one for Chris J. Wendy if he can, we are in Calgary,Alberta, Canada i will pass the informatio on to my friend thanks, Wendy kate SignatureJoin us in the Diabetic-Talk Chatroom on UnderNet /server irc.undernet.org --- /join #Diabetic-Talk More info: http://www.diabetic-talk.org/ http://www.diabetic-talk.org/freeveggies.htm I have no medical qualifications beyond my own experience. Choose your advisers carefully, because experience can be an expensive teacher. > : she's been down to an 'expert' in Seattle to see > : what studies she can qualify for [quoted text clipped - 29 lines] > successful for me when used in conjuntion with a steriod injection into > the ee. .I currently am stable at 20/100 in the right eye for corrected > vision for distance after having 3 avastin treatments injected into the > eye. The Avastin tretmen, is an off-label use of the drug used for [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > > Wendy > I'm sorry about all your problems Will, and hopefully they won't get any > worse. Thanks for the information and best to you. > > -- > Cheri Thanks for the concern and good wishes. I just found out the name of my diagnosis. The doctor told the hospital that I have suffered what he terms "branch retinal artery occlusion", cutting off the blood supply to part of the retina.... All I know for sure is that it has really messed up my vision in that eye, and it does not sound good. All these tests are to get greater definition of the scope of the problem.... The next round of appointments in the hospital will be on Thursday morning. Hope you are having a good one, today. I have not seen you on here much for the last few days. Did you take a vacation? Will, T2 I'm so sorry that all this has happened to with your eye. I know it must be terribly hard with the reading and things to not see well when you're a lawyer, I'm hoping for the best for you. Yes, I have not been on the group for a few days, ignoring the diabetes, just eating right and not testing, and catching up on some deep cleaning around the house. Damn, the rain is just not going to stop, but at least I have got a ton done. Take care Will. -- Cheri wmmckee@cox.net wrote in message ... >> I'm sorry about all your problems Will, and hopefully they won't get any >> worse. Thanks for the information and best to you. [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > >Will, T2 This post not CC'd by email >Why this should be interesting to all diabetics is that this doctor is >concerned that the original shutdown of the blood supply to my macula in the [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] >ankles, as well as a frozen shoulder, such that my regular doctor originally >thought I had developed rheumatoid arthritis G'day G'day Will, Thanks for drawing the attention of asd to the need for diabetics to deal with inflammatory processes. Sometimes there are few visible signs and it is merely referred to as silent inflammatory disease. Never the less it is serious and must be attended to avoid events such as the one that occurred to you. Thanks also for mention retinal exams. Many newbies confuse retinal exams which are most important with prescriptions for new lenses which are a lower priority though the need for them attracts attention more easily. Best wishes, SignatureQuentin Grady ^ ^ / New Zealand, >#,#< [ / \ /\ "... and the blind dog was leading." http://homepages.paradise.net.nz/quentin > G'day G'day Will, > [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > > Best wishes, Thanks so much, Quentin. As always, it is good hearing from you on just about anything. If only a single person learns anything from my experiences, and thereby avoids the same thing happening to them, then I think I will have accomplished something good and worthwhile. Diabetics are very prone to suffer from inflammations, and as you know, they are not always even aware of the inflammations lurking in their systms, until something bad happens, which is what you termed silent iniflammatory disease. If it is of interest, one of the many tests that has been ordered for me is a c-reactive protein study, which is designed to evaluate the level of inflammation I may have going on right now. Also, there is the possiblity that my eye trouble could be part of an autoimmune problem. The thing about retinal issues is that they can be very sneaky, also.... and especially so for diabetics, I have learned. I would urge every diabetic to have regular retinal exams, whether they think they need them, or not. Once your macula goes, it seems to be simply gone, "poof", just like that. It is lights out. A person who has suffered it may still be able to see light from dark, and they may still be able to make out shapes and movement, but there is no central, or detailed, vision at all.... It is just not there. Hope you are doing OK with those vertebrae this evening, or should I say morning? Is there any improvement? Take care, my friend, Will : > G'day G'day Will, : > [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] : > : > Best wishes, : Thanks so much, Quentin. : As always, it is good hearing from you on just about anything. If only a : single person learns anything from my experiences, and thereby avoids the [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] : right now. Also, there is the possiblity that my eye trouble could be part : of an autoimmune problem. : The thing about retinal issues is that they can be very sneaky, also.... and : especially so for diabetics, I have learned. I would urge every diabetic to [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] : dark, and they may still be able to make out shapes and movement, but there : is no central, or detailed, vision at all.... It is just not there. : Hope you are doing OK with those vertebrae this evening, or should I say : morning? Is there any improvement? : Take care, my friend, : Will OK Will, you, Chris J and I have our work cut out for us to get all the newbies to opthamologists ASAP afte diagnosis, even if they saw one jsut a few months before their diagnosis. We will be a team to help prevent some of the problems associated with maculas, whether diabetically or otherwise causes. OK team, we have to watch for every newbie thread and get at least one of us on ASAP. Wendy >w >: Will [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > >Wendy I'll surely do what I can, Wendy... Will, T2 >Hello dear friends, > [quoted text clipped - 59 lines] > >Wishing you all a good day from the Twilight Zone..... Twighlight Zone is something diabetes puts us all. You and Chris sure make scary postings that garner one's attention. I wonder one thing with you and Chris - both of you are quite unique in the short time since your DX, and how intense your visual problems are at this moment. Do your doctors think you had diabetes for a long time? I wonder how long one has to have diabetes in an uncontrolled state before the eyes are affected? > Wishing you all a good day from the Twilight Zone..... > > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > wonder how long one has to have diabetes in an uncontrolled state > before the eyes are affected? Hello Bruce, I don't think there is any way of knowing how long I may have had diabetes, but I do suspect I have had it for longer than the year since I was first diagnosed. In fact, I would surmise it probably began quietly and progressively as long as 5 or 6 years ago, it was just never picked up. I probably had it in late 2002, when I had a crisis of acute hypertension that sent me to the hospital. In fact, I remember the blood work on that occasion came back with an elevated glucose reading, but the doctors weren't worried about it, because it was "not that high" and it was midday. Indeed, on that occasion I recall it was around 130, or so... In the succeeding years, I was being treated for hypertension and was being closely followed by my doctor.... There were fasting blood samples taken, over the years, but no mention of diabetes. The first time I noticed anything really bad with my eyes that was cause for alarm was when I was getting my BG readings more normalized after diagnonsis a little over a year ago.... In reading up on branch retinal artery occlusion this afternoon, I have read that many of those who have had this happen report it being rather sudden in onset, with only about a 90 minute window to prevent damage after the incident. It is also typically painless..... If it happened to me during the adjustment phase of post-diagnosis treatment for diabetes last year, or at night in my sleep, I simply did not realize it was happening, because I could not see very well anyway, and the "good eye" was compensating. The really bad news in what I am reading this afternoon is that I am at higher risk of stroke and heart attack. But then, all of us diabetics face a much greater risk of stroke or heart attack. There is a lot of info out there about this condition, and representative links would be at http://www.eyemdlink.com/Condition.asp?ConditionID=79 http://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/WSIHW000/9339/10608.html Again, I urge all my friends who may be reading this to learn from what has happened to me and to try to protect your eyes.... Will,T2 >Again, I urge all my friends who may be reading this to learn from what has >happened to me and to try to protect your eyes.... > >Will,T2 Thank you for posting it. All my best wishes Will. Cheers, Alan, T2, Australia. d&e, metformin 2x500mg SignatureEverything in Moderation - Except Laughter. >> Wishing you all a good day from the Twilight Zone..... >> > [quoted text clipped - 42 lines] >Again, I urge all my friends who may be reading this to learn from what has >happened to me and to try to protect your eyes.... You and Chris are definitely my future since my mother went blind from this disease. You and Chris scare me. How will this affect your law practice, and will it affect your driving? Chris, if I remember correctly is a real estate realtor and drives a lot. Scary. > You and Chris are definitely my future since my mother went blind from > this disease. You and Chris scare me. How will this affect your law > practice, and will it affect your driving? Chris, if I remember > correctly is a real estate realtor and drives a lot. Scary. Hi Bruce, I can still see to drive well enough, for now, and hopefully the vision will not get any worse. That is one reason for all these tests and workups, though, so that we can address any continuing problems that may cause further catastrophic effects for my vision, or even worse... The next time it could be a stroke or heart attack. As far as the law practice is concerned, I can still see well enough to do that, as well, but I do seem to become tired more easily, as the eyestrain of working with the cataract in the left eye and the blindness in the right eye slows me down some. I used to be able to read difficult material at about 1000 words a minute. I used to read a typical novel in a few hours, at most. Sometimes, I would read several in a day... I cannot do that anymore, although I remain a compulsive reader. Also, my eyes now play tricks on me in ways that they formerly they did not.... Will, T2 wmmckee wrote: > Why this should be interesting to all diabetics is that this doctor is > concerned that the original shutdown of the blood supply to my macula > in the right eye looks like the end result of an inflammatory process > or a possible autoimmune response that went awry. As some of you may > recall, when I was first diagnosed, I was suffering from excruciating > pain in my feet and ankles, as well as a frozen shoulder, such that > my regular doctor originally thought I had developed rheumatoid > arthritis. At that time, the blood workup for the arthritis turned > out to be negative, but my fasting blood sugar was 290, with an a1c > of 13. When diabetes was confirmed by followup testing, and > treatment began, I had horrible visual disturbances, and shortly > thereafter, I began to notice some continuing abnormality in the > functioning of that right eye, even after the left one had cleared. > The foot and ankle pain has gone now, and my shoulder problem is > much, much better, but still present. The retina specialist feels > there may be a link between the inflammations, the retina casualty, > and the diabetes. Sorry to here all this Will. Out of curiosity, what was your original treatment for the diabetes at diagnosis? > I shall be going in to the hospital tomorrow, or the next day, for > additional tests, including that carotid doppler study and about 8 > different blood tests.... Now, I am even being screened for lupus and > rheumatoid arthritis, again! ugh! Of course, I shall keep you all > posted. I hope they are negative Will. > Now for the news about my "good" eye..... I have a small cataract, and > today, for the first time I was advised that the pressure in that eye > was > 23. While the retina man said he was not alarmed about it, since it > was not necessarily dangerous to have a one-time test result of 23, > it is a flag of possible developing glaucoma....:-( Anything over 19 > is considered abnormally "high".... Another point of view would be > that the pressure in the eyes of a lot of people fluctuate, anyway, > although going up to 23 is starting to signal a problem.... So we are > just going to have to "keep an eye" on it. Ok, is there a reason why he can't start you on the drops now, anyway? After all, you only have one good eye, I'd be inclined to want to treat anything very early, even if it is only a temporary fluctuation. > In the course of all this, I have learned that diabetics are at more > than twice the risk of glaucoma as non-diabetics, and at much greater > risk of developing cataracts, as well. Nod, and worse if a parent has had glaucoma also. > Taking a cue from Chris J, I would urge any diabetic, especially the > newly diagnosed, to see a retina specialist at the first sign of > trouble. While the eyes of most newbies get blurry from changes in > internal osmotic pessure caused by adjustment in blood glucose > levels, this disease can and does attack the retina through various > mechanisms. Don't let what happened to me happen to you, if it can be > avoided. Could my retina damage have been avoided? We shall likely > never know the answer to that one with certainty, but I would say > probably not. At diagnosis, my body was so wracked with the pain of > multiple inflammations, I really felt as though I was dying. I just > did not realize it was striking my retina, as the damage to the > retina was masked from awareness by the blurry vision of the changing > osmotic pressure. Yes, most of us go through the vision changes at the beginning, but a good doctor gives a referral to an ophthalmologist at diagnosis. We have one reasonably close to us that specialises in diabetes. So far I just go to the one I have gone to since I moved to this area 14 years ago but I know this other one exists if needs be. > Wishing you all a good day from the Twilight Zone..... > > Will, the One-Eyed Pirate, T2 I preferred One-Eyed Willy :) > Yes, most of us go through the vision changes at the > beginning, but a good doctor gives a referral to an [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > I preferred One-Eyed Willy :) Hello, Jan You are a dear! Thanks for the good wishes and concern. To answer your question about the original treatment, I was put on avandamet, which I now understand to be linked to some possible retina problems in some of its users, mostly from macular edema, I believe. As for the possible glaucoma, I go in again for a new round of testing and consultation next Monday..... The doc says he will take another look at the eye pressure then, before he decides what should be done.... It is a bit scary, though, now that I am down to one eye. The pressure in the "bad" eye was fine..... Yeah, that "One-Eyed Willie" thing turned out to backfire in rather funny fashion! I decided to use something else as a handle, to avoid possible awkward moments.... It could give rise to some misundertandings with some.... ;-) Well, I hope you are well and having a won |
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