Quicktopic posts: Sep 2003

[Janet Manning]

Hi Kate,
Thank you. That's very helpful to know what's possible. I knew it was the hospital dragging their feet and not the supply company. It's good to know that the NHS works in some places.

Ken has helped out as usual so I'll get some action now, but we shouldn't have to keep bothering him.

I will now work on getting them to phone through the order - what a good idea!!!!
Janet

[Andrew Thomas MacLean]

Can anyone help me?

I have just started to wear a scleral in my left eye, and things are not going too well. I manage to get it in with no difficulty, and when I take it out immediately after insertion, it comes out with equal ease.
When I leave it in for more than about half an hour, it becomes very tight on my eye (I think my eye becomes a little bit inflamed). Getting the lens out is then quite a problem, and when it comes out it is bone dry and my eye is very painful for a couple of hours.

My eyes are usually dry. I use carbomer gel to lubricate my eyes.
I fill the lens with saline before insertrion, having cleaned it with Total cleaner and rinsed it with saline.

Obviously I am doing something wrong, but I do not know what. Can anyone advise?

[Sue Ingram]

Dear Andrew (1992), I have been wearing scleral lenses for over three years now and have never been able to actually get the lenses out manually. I have to use the little sucker (looks like a very tiny sink plunger!). The lenses really seem to suck onto my eyes and there is no way anyone is getting them out without the sucker! Some people seem to have this problem, whereas others can wear their sclerals for hours on end and then just pop them out with their fingers (I wish!). I always dread the day that I might forget to take the sucker with me when I leave the house .....

It sounds as though you are doing everything correctly. Are you using the little sucker or just trying manually? Put some saline (Amidose or Steripod) into your eyes and blink a few times before trying to take the lenses out - this definitely seems to help if they have got very stuck. I also find that you need to put the sucker on the upper part of the lens, rather than bang in the middle, and then the lens seems to release. If I put it in the middle of the lens, the lens does not budge but it feels as if I am trying to pull my whole eye out! I am sure others must have hints and tips on how they remove their lenses.

However, it does not sound right that you eye is becoming inflamed and that your eye hurts after removal, so maybe your lens is not fitting properly - maybe it is actually too tight a fit. Best to check this out with your practitioner. Take care and let us know how you get on. SUE

[Janet Manning]

Hi Andrew,
Totally agree with Sue. If I don't put saline in each eye before removing my sclerals it really hurts taking them out and continues to hurt for some time afterwards. I put the saline in the corners of my eye, tip my head from side to side and blink lots to distribute and then use the sucker. Result - painless removal!

This is something we should be told at the teaching session on putting the lenses in. I used to have the same problem with softperms and got into a real panic one night before I thought of the saline trick. I also lubricate my eyes frequently throughout the day.

Re my campaign for a spare set of lenses - have decided on my first letter - to the Head of the hospital concerned. But I have a back up strategy ready!! Will let you all know how it goes.
Janet

[Sue Ingram]

Hi Janet, I am behind you all the way with regard to all KCers having a spare set of lenses - I have been saying it for years; it is definitely a necessity and not just a luxury! If you need any help with your campaign, let me know. Good luck. SUE

[harpomatrix@yahoo.co.uk]

Hi,

Gone awol for a while. I'm having my cornea transplant next monday on the 8th sept. Not sure what to expect. I really need it to go well, especially since I am supposed to start uni a week and a half after for year 3. Worried that it will go wrong or something. Also worried I might need more than a week to recover from the op. Its 3rd year of uni so I need to not be having probs with my right eye. Worried since my right eye waters a bit.

Goin to moorfields in the mornin next week and they said i go home the same day. Not sure if I should feel a bit better about that or not. Pretty scared to be honest but not looking or needing reassureance.

See ya people

[Gillian]

Hi Janet - it doesn't surprise me at all the NHS and sometimes others just don't comprehend how dependant we KC sufferers are on lenses. Unless someone has a major understanding of this condition they just regard us all as 'problem' and pushy people. Sometimes I think that people think we are completely mad. Fortunately there a just a few people who take the trouble to understand what it is like for us and we all have to be very grateful for this - I certainly am. Yes, I totally agree we all need a spare pair of lenses. Also those who wear corneals should have a pair of sclerals for use when the corneals are inappropriate. This seems out of the question as far as the NHS is concerned. However, if one really thinks about it - it is only like a non KC person having a pair of glasses to wear when lenses hurt.

I am in the very fortunate position of having corneals and sclerals. For the past three years every summer from June to September I seem to get an allergy which makes wearing corneals impossible. I, therefore, wear sclerals during this period. This is the first year I have been lucky enough to have this option and so far reasonably good. I am interested to note that you lubricate your lenses throughout the day - what do you use? I am always able to remove them with ease. However, after about 10 hours they do get dry and I usually resort to taking them out then. This obviously means I then can't see which can be a bit of a problem!!. Sometimes I use Refresh at this stage but it doesn't do much - can you suggest an alternative?

Good luck with your campaigning - I fully support you.

[aimee.wilkes@bt.com]

Hi everyone,

other than Refresh Opthalmic what other 'tears' are there on the market to use, only i seem to be have developed an allergy against the refresh, as i'm new to KC I have only ever used refresh - any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks

Aimee


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[Andrew Thomas MacLean]

Many thanks for the help. Sue, I don't have a little sucker, so I have to dig the lens out with my finger.

I hadn't thought of bathing my eye with saline prior to extracting the lens. I'll give this a go and see what happens.

Meantime, do you know where I can get a sucker? Should I go to my hospital specialist, or can I get one in the private sector?

Thanks again for your help.

Yours aye

Andrew

[Andrew Thomas MacLean]

Hi Aimee

I use Carbomer Gel. You can get it on prescription, but if you pay for your prescriptions, it's cheaper to buy it over the counter.

I'd ask my doctor before starting it, just in case there is some reason why you shouldn't use it.

Yours aye

Andrew
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>From: QT - aimee.wilkes@bt.com <qtopic+6-A46Jzt4sJAXLTWnJNHsx@quicktopic.com>
>To: QT topic subscribers <qtopic+subs@quicktopic.com>
>Subject: Keratoconus
>Date: Tue, Sep 2, 2003, 8:18 am
>

< replied-to message removed by QT >