UK Keratoconus Self-Help and Support Association

For the last few months I've been getting really bad headaches the day after wearing my contacts.

The headache comes on a few hours after taking my contacts out. Or more commonly, I'll wake up the next day with the headache.

The pain is a dull, constant ache in the frontal-lobe (I think thats the technical term for the front of ones brain) They'll often last between 24 and 48 hours.

Considering where the ache is and timing I'm thinking they have to be related to the contacts in some way. However, I've searched the forum and the web and cant find anyone with a similar issue. Headaches are common, but often people are complaining of headache symptoms before, or during the wearing of their lenses. Not afterwards like myself.

Has anyone else had a similar experience?

Thanks

P.S: My lenses are Kerasoft IC lenses and usual wear time is only 4-5 hours every week or so.

Hi Rich
You're right, I can't recall anyone having headaches AFTER the lenses have come out. But I wonder if the clue is in your PS? If you're only wearing the lenses once a week or so is your brain complaining about this sudden change in the normal processing it has to do? Do you wear glasses the rest of the time?
Anne

Hi Anne,

Thanks for the reply.

Yes. 99% of the time I get by wearing my glasses as these offer the best vision/comfort.

I did think it could be my brain adjusting. Due to issues finding a suitable lens correction for my left eye, I can only use them for general stuff like sport, walking etc so I never really have the chance to extend the wear time. If the left lens gave better vision and I didn't end up with the headaches I would wear them more often.

I'm off back to my optician next week to report on my latest left lens (which didn't appear to work) so I'll raise the headaches issue with her.

I guess my biggest worry is that the lenses are doing damage to the eye in some way.

I only get what you desscribe if I wear glasses because they can only correct vision in one eye only and then only just enough to pass the driving standard.

If glasses give you the best vision, at face value it implies you perhaps don't need contact lenses or the Kerasoft IC you have been prescribed are of the in correct prescription as you should be able to wear them for more than just a few hours every week.

I wear mine on average for 16 hours per day, 7 days per week. Glasses are generally only worn while I am having my eyes checked.

Any lens fitted incorrectly can cause damage. For example a tight fitting soft lens can rub on the edges of the cornea margin and a tight RGP can draw the cornea out. Loose soft lenses can be irritating as they rub the eye lid and a loose RGP lens can rub the cornea resulting in corneal scarring.

That said the short length of tiem you are wearing soft lenses, I would be surprised if they resulted in any damage, you would soon know because your eyes would be very red and sore.

Unfortunatly there is no single lens that works for all of us.

Thanks Gareth.

My lenses do give me better vision than my glasses, it's just that due to dry eyes etc I find I can't wear the lenses for very long. I get by with glasses only because they correct my left, less KC affected eye very well. With the glasses on the left is clearly the dominate eye.

Thinking this through. I really think the headaches could be caused by the brain being overloaded by the strength of the corrected vision through the lens in my right eye.

I'm going to force myself to try the lenses for shorter periods and see what happens.

Thanks

P.S: To add... After five hours wear time last night, both eyes were blood shot and aching. Hence my evident issue with lenses and concerns of eye damage. This is still better than what I could ever manage with RGPs which I stopped using 3-4 years ago.

What has your optom recomended to you to address the dry eye issue?

I was told to use wetting eye drops and after trying many of a six month or more period I found that the single use Systane ampoules worked best. I put a drop in my eye first thing in the morning and when I put the lenses in, I put a drop in the back of the lens. Last thing at night I put a drop of systane in my eye. Without the Systane which is a lubricating eye drop I wouldn't be able to wear my lenses as long as I do.

I too gave up on RGP's about the same time as you and that was when I was told about eye drops to help with dry eyes, but that only meant I could wear RGP's for an hour max.

Another thing about eye drops is people think they will work immediatly, but you need to use them over a period of time so they have a chance to adress the dry eye issues. I would use drops for two weeks and if there were no improvement, I would try another type which is why it took me so long to find one that worked. If I tried them for a shorter period, it was becase they stung my eye when putting the drops in and this never went away. In the end I tried about 17 different eye drops and Systane by Alcon worked best for me.

With dry eyes show up as feeling dry and gritty or constantly wattering, but the effects of an ill fitting lens are still more apparant. People think tears are just salty water but there are three components, salty water, fatty lipids and a surfactant to make the lipids flow in the salty media. A deficiency in one and you have dry eyes and no eye drops replicate all three components so eye drops labelled as artificial tears is very misleading. My tears appear to me deficient in the surfactant and lipid component which is what Systane mimics. Hence the need to try differnt eye drops to find which works best for you.

Many of us also have alergies and I found with RGP's, anti histamines, especially in summer helped. Howeve since being on the soft lenses, these make no difference at all so I just use the eye drops.

A tight lens means you don't get what tears you have wetting the cornea surface properly, too few tears, too little to go under the lens, too many evaporate quickly and can have a drying effect.
A loose lens will be too mobile and its movement will speed up the breakup of the tear film on the eye surface.

I use celluvisc 1% that seem to work well

Leave a but of a white crust that you need to clear off your eye lashes though...

If you get the hospital or your doctor to put them on prescription for you it helps with the cost

Thank you for your detailed feedback. Very much appreciated,

GarethB wrote:What has your optom recomended to you to address the dry eye issue?

They've recommended a range of treatments. I've tried everything from baby shampoo and cotton buds to clean my tears ducts, through to viscotears etc. Ive also tried at what must amount to at least ten different brands of eye drops. On top of this I apparently have issues with blepharitis so have used various solutions and compresses to sort that.

Your description of your own dry eyes issues sounds very similar to my own. Very interesting to read. I have tried Systane earlier this year and they helped me where contacts for a week whilst Skiing. I still got read eyes but looking back no headaches. I couldn't work out if this was the Alpine air, the fact I was putting loads of drops in. Increase in water intake or maybe just the brighter conditions. Also I've swapped the left lens twice since then so hard to say if that's the lens. That aside I'm going to give Systane to another go. Thanks!

Also thanks Nicky for the tip regarding Celluvisc. Will give that a try as well.

I think one of the problems I have, and I imagine I'm not alone with this. Is that with the constant changing of KC, PS, lens and glasses, it's very tricky to find any base point to work out what works and doesn't work. I think over the last seven years I've only had a few months of stable lenses and glasses.

My consultant is keen to insert an Intac into the left eye but this is something I'm holding off due to recovery and work commitments. Hence my interest to fix the headaches and get these contacts working

Thanks again everyone. It's really helping me think the situation through.