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Medical Forum / General / Vision / March 2006Troubling eye condition
I have peripheral neuropathy (progressive, poly), type2 diabetes, and my ability to focus changes continually throughout the day, depending on the time of day, tiredness, ambient light, etc. With my ongoing neurological problems, obviously, when I have an eye examination, Opticians can only check how my eyes are at that moment, so I am having to rely on 3 or 4 pairs of different strength reading glasses. I am also very sensitive to bright lights, and driving in the dark is difficult, as I liken myself to a moth - I want to follow oncoming headlights. I have been told not to drive in the dark by the practioner but I am unsure how I stand legally on this (I am in the UK). My doctor is unable to provide any answers, only sympathise. My questions are. Is there a term for this condition? Would my problems be likely to the miriad of medication I am taking (too long to list here). Can anything be done to help me? Sorry to bring this to the group, but I am really struggling now. Thank you for reading, Tony(UK) Second try: Diaabetes is the most likely cause of the variation in your vision. Is your blood sugar stable? What meds are you on? dr grant > Second try: > > Diaabetes is the most likely cause of the variation in your vision. Is > your blood sugar stable? What meds are you on? > > dr grant Diabetes has been stable for the last two years (3.5 to 5) Eyes have been progressively worsening over the last 6-8 months. Medication - long list follows ;-) Co- Proxamol. Two taken, three to four times daily. Lisinopril 2.5Mg. One Daily. Asprin 75Mg. One Daily. Atorvastatin 40Mg One Daily. Metformin Hydrochloride 500Mg One, three times daily. Rosiglitazone Maleate 4Mg. One Daily. Movelat Gel. Apply as required. (for muscle swelling/spasms) Omacor Capsules 1000mg 2 Capsules, Twice Daily Omeprazole Tablets 20mg 1 Daily Nabumetone Tablets 500mg 1-2 Tablets at night Baclofen 10mg One, three times daily. (anti-spasm nerve relaxant). Yes, I rattle :-) Many thanks for taking an interest. Tony(UK) "Yes, I rattle :-)" That's was my thought when I finally scrolled to the end!!! There are a lot of interaction issues, particularly with aspirin and metformin. Diabetes is the first thing we think of when we see diunal variation of your script. Is the BS stable throughout the day, or do you just take readings in the morning? Take a level teaspoon of cinnamon each day, it will help control the BS also. dr grant > "Yes, I rattle :-)" > > That's was my thought when I finally scrolled to the end!!! > > There are a lot of interaction issues, particularly with aspirin and > metformin. I'd be very greatful if you could expand on this please. > Diabetes is the first thing we think of when we see diunal variation of > your script. Is the BS stable throughout the day, or do you just take > readings in the morning? diunal variation? Is that what my eye problem is called? BS is stable throughout the day - the rest of me isn't :-) Up to three readings throughout the day. > Take a level teaspoon of cinnamon each day, it will help control the BS > also. Dr. Grant - are you sure? It tastes horrible! Can I take this with water/anything? > dr grant All my medication is prescribed by the same doctor - I always ask when he gives me new drugs about adverse reactions with all the others - the answer is always the same, should be OK. I know I'm hogging the group and bandwidth, for which I apologise, but I am really greatful for any help. Tony(UK) I have a computer program that you list all the drugs and it tells you all the problems that can occur. These are possible interactions, not definitive that they will occur. You need to start looking at the options, food through the day, BS variance over the course of a day, other possible disease markers, maculopathy etc. Sometimes it can be hard to find the cause, but if you keep your eyes and ears open, you never know. About the cinnamon, I take it in 50ml of water and wash it down with another glass of water. Yes, it tastes pretty shitty, but has a similar active compound to Metformin and helps stabilise BS. Cheers from downunder (where the bloody hell are you? LOL) dr grant >I have a computer program that you list all the drugs and it tells you > all the problems that can occur. These are possible interactions, not [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > > dr grant Thank you for all your help dr, I will do what you suggest. I'd very much like that computer programme, but I think it would be for doctors only :-) Cheers and many thanks from Linton, Cambridge, United Kingdom LOL >>I have a computer program that you list all the drugs and it tells you >> all the problems that can occur. These are possible interactions, not [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > like that computer programme, but I think it would be for doctors only :-) > Cheers and many thanks from Linton, Cambridge, United Kingdom LOL This website may or may not help. I couldn't find 'aspirin' in either the patient's page or the professional's page for metformin, but it's better than nothing. http://search.drugs.com/search.php  SignatureCheers, Bev $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ Don't tax me. Don't tax thee. Tax that man behind the tree. > This website may or may not help. I couldn't find 'aspirin' in either the > patient's page or the professional's page for metformin, but it's better > than nothing. > http://search.drugs.com/search.php Aspirin is acetylsalicylic acid. Who would know that? Probably not even pharmacists anymore. >> This website may or may not help. I couldn't find 'aspirin' in either the >> patient's page or the professional's page for metformin, but it's better [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > Aspirin is acetylsalicylic acid. Who would know that? Probably not even > pharmacists anymore. I did, but it seemed to approve of it. I remember when some aspirin manufacturer claimed their product was made of sodium acetylsalicylate. That's fun to say. SignatureCheers, Bev =================================================================== Teamwork: A bunch of people running around doing what I tell them. On Tue, 14 Mar 2006 10:39:29 -0000, "Tony\(UK\)" <tony_smith100@hotmail.com> spewed forth : > BS is stable >throughout the day - the rest of me isn't :-) Up to three readings >throughout the day. Three BG tests daily can't really tell you if your BG is "stable" or not no matter what your physician tells you. I test as frequently as 12 times per day, especially when I've been unwise and tanked up on something carby. Whip out the meter when you notice any change in your vision - clean your hands thoroughly and test your BG. Variations in BG of as little as 15 points can affect vision. Consistently high BG, or large swings in BG, can also affect vision. Diabetes - T1, T2, controlled or otherwise - makes us candidates for all sorts of eye problems. You should have a dilated eye exam on an annual basis, more frequently if your BG is under poor control. Back to the testing thing: You should take a fasting BG, 1- and 2-hour post-prandials, test before all meals and snacks, and take a bedtime reading as well. Do this until you know how different carby foods affect your BG and modify your diet accordingly. Better control reduces all sorts of nasty problems diabetecs can develop. +++++++++++++ Reply to the list as I do not publish an email address to USENET. This practice has cut my spam by more than 95%. Of course, I did have to abandon a perfectly good email account... > I have peripheral neuropathy (progressive, poly), type2 diabetes, and my > ability to focus changes continually throughout the day, depending on the [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > > Tony(UK) Tony what is your age? And are your glasses purely single-vision reading lenses or are they multifocals (or bifocals)? And I don't suppose you would have a copy of your optical prescription (including distance vision and the Add) that you could copy to this group? Dom > Tony what is your age? > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > Dom Dom I am 50, but I'm afraid I do not have a copy of my optical prescription. All I am aware of is that I used to wear glasses for long-distance, but the optician said she thought I don't need them anymore, only when I am tired (?). On the day, both eyes were the same, needing 1.25 lenses. I have to wear non-prescription reading glasses of a range 1.5 to 2.00 to be able to *see* a computer screen or book. After a couple of minutes though, everything goes out of focus again (blurred) and I'm back to square one. (I've changed glasses twice while I write this). I did go back, but no help or advice was forthcoming. Nor the doctor, I'm afraid. Thank you very much for taking interest - sorry I cannot be of more help. I have a distinct feeling it may be more than diabetes - it is quite stable, and tend to think it may be neurological, what are your feelings on this bearing in mind my previous posts? Tony(UK) >>Tony what is your age? >> [quoted text clipped - 22 lines] > > Tony(UK) When you described your vision as being clear at first but then becoming blurry after only a few minutes, I thought of the possibility of dry eye - it's common in diabetics especially with peripheral neuropathy and it's also a common side effect of many medications. Do you have a dry mouth? If so this makes dry eye a more likely culprit. Dry eye can cause vision to fluctuate from minute to minute as the tear film changes consistency & coverage. Vision changes due to blood sugar changes wouldn't be that quick. Also, dry eye if severe enough can make you light-sensitive due to temporary drying and partial 'haze' of the corneal epithelium (surface cell layer) (superficial keratitis). You wouldn't necessarily feel any other symptoms such as sore eyes. Sometimes eyes that are dry actually become watery (overcompensation). http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=1 1237914&dopt=Abstract http://www.alconlabs.com/us/aj/disorders/dryeye/Index.jhtml http://www.emedicine.com/OPH/topic597.htm (and scroll down) Re. driving at night: if you normally have the vents in the car directed at your face this will exacerbate any existing dry eye problem in that particular situation and therefore make the oncoming headlights more dazzling. The other possibility I thought of was if you have a slight 'defect' or strain in your general/longer distance vision, as opposed to your reading vision which we already know is blurred. If you used to wear glasses for long distance then maybe you need to go back to them? Not so sure about this one though, now that I know your age, and especially without seeing your optical prescription. Dry eye is only one idea, your medications might well be involved too. But my money's on the dry eye thing. If any of what I've written sounds plausible to you, try some artificial tears every 2 hours (don't hold back, more is better) for a few days, and especially 5 minutes before you sit down to read something. If you read for more than say 20-30 minutes you might need some more again. Try Systane or Bion Tears. Dom (also in Oz!) >>>Tony what is your age? snipped for brevity > When you described your vision as being clear at first but then becoming > blurry after only a few minutes, I thought of the possibility of dry eye - [quoted text clipped - 36 lines] > > Dom (also in Oz!) Dry mouth, watery eyes - both are spot on. I squint and blink alot. You may well have hit on something here, and I'll definately give it a go with the artificial tears and dr grants suggestions. What a group! I've learned a lot, and if it's OK, will report back with my findings. Just been prescribed Baclofen for my muscle spasms, so I'll wait a little while and see. Many thanks (from the heart) for all the help. I think I'm in the wrong country :-) Tony(UK) |
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