Re: Update . . . and Question

[Guest guest]

Dear , I have always had very dry eyes and a lot

of problems seeing in full sun. When I was 18, I wore

my contacts (hard lenses) from 7 in the morning until

12 at night. I woke up around 3 in the morning to the

worse pain I had ever experienced. My eyes wouldn't

water but needed to. My parents brought me to the ER.

They gave me medicine to knock me out all day once I

got home and my mother had to wake me up and apply the

drops every hour. I did not have any lasting problems

after it cleared up. Wish you luck. Iris

--- /Celine Kossart <kozys@...> wrote:

>

>

> Hi all,

>

> Just popping in to say HI and let you all know how I

> have been coming along

> these past months. I am still on the methotrexate

> and Celebrex and feeling

> as close to normal as someone with RA can, I guess.

> My last couple of

> visits to the rheumy were uneventful which is, I

> guess, to be considered a

> blessing i disguise.

>

> My GP is trying to wean me off of taking insulin for

> the diabetes which I

> only had to start taking because of the prednisone

> they put me on when I

> was initially diagnosed with RA. It's hard to

> believe that it's been two

> years now since the RA hit me all at once. Anyway,

> I am down to about a

> dozen or less units of the insulin per day which is

> pretty good. He now

> has me taking a single Glucovance pill in the

> morning at breakfast

> time. My blood sugars before dinner are usually

> about in the 80 to 120

> range, which is pretty much normal, but I can feel

> it, it seems when it

> goes below 90 or so. Of course it will go up after

> eating and that is what

> I am trying to use the insulin to counteract but two

> hours after supper it

> is usually well under 200.

>

> Flares have been few and far between, especially the

> past few months. I

> know this won't/can't last forever, but I am

> enjoying it while it does last

> and thanking God for it, too. If something does act

> up, it usually is just

> one joint and improves in a day or two. I have

> noticed that the amount of

> time I can stand or walk around seems to be less,

> because of my knees, feet

> and ankles. Seems they act up when you sit too

> long, and if you stand too

> long. Kind of severely limits my options. 8^D

>

> The past two months were stressful because we had

> some major construction

> going on around here - a new roof and all of the

> concrete as in sidewalks,

> patio, and driveway replaced, too. Living on a

> corner lot in town, you can

> imagine the amount of labor and material that went

> into the job. Oh yeah,

> we also had new doors, windows and siding put on the

> garage. Heck no I

> didn't do it myself - those days are over and the

> job was too big for me to

> even fool myself into thinking I could do anyway.

> We were real glad when

> the construction guys finally left and glad that the

> stress of it all,

> along with some problems that popped up along the

> way, haven't seemed to

> make my RA worse.

>

> I am still going along trying to work in the

> basement here and there in

> hopes of getting it prepared for putting in the

> model trains. I pretty

> much stay at home but usually go out to visit a

> friend or two on Friday

> evening and Saturday afternoon. I still get pretty

> fatigued, though, in

> the afternoons and have to stop everything, lie down

> and nap. I have tried

> to ignore it but it usually doesn't go away and I

> have to give in.

>

> Now I am going through a new trial and am wondering

> if any of you have

> heard or experienced this. Last Sunday my right eye

> just didn't feel

> right. It is hard to explain but every now and then

> it would feel slightly

> irritated and water a little. I didn't think too

> much about it but by this

> past Thursday, since it wasn't really feeling any

> better (though it wasn't

> feeling any worse, either) I decided to visit the

> local eye doctor and have

> him take a look. I got in that very afternoon and

> he said I had an

> ulcerated cornea (in my right eye) which was

> beginning to get infected. He

> said that I may have had something in there that

> scratched it recently, or

> that with the RA some of the medications tend to dry

> your eyes out (though

> I hadn't really noticed this in my case) which makes

> the problem easier to

> occur. He gave me a script for some antibiotic eye

> drops and told me to

> put in a drop every hours for the next 24. I had to

> set a kitchen timer

> all night to wake up and put in the drop. This

> doesn't make me too popular

> with the better-half, but of course she understands.

>

> The eye doc had me come back the next day (Friday)

> to look at it and said

> it looked a bit better. He then asked if I could

> come in on Saturday

> morning so he could check it again. The office

> isn't normally open then

> but he said he would meet me there and open up. I

> remarked that he seems

> to be following up on this pretty aggressively, and

> asked him if this was a

> potential problem in the making. He said, " Oh yes,

> people have gone blind

> from this. " I replied something about this all

> being caused by a little

> speck of something in my eye I wasn't even aware of.

> He said possibly, but

> more than likely the RA itself could be causing it

> to become inflamed, or

> possibly the drying effect of the medications could

> cause the tissue to

> easily tear. I hadn't heard of any of this before.

> Has anyone else.

>

> I asked him so what happens now. He said the

> antibiotics are a chance for

> letting my body heal the problem by itself, but if

> that doesn't work then

> they have to use, I think he said an

> anti-inflammatory, but that causes

> something to change in the immune system which could

> be a problem. So can

> someone tell me what's going on here? I wish I

> could remember EXACTLY what

> he said but I'll just blame it on RA brain fog . . .

> OK?

>

> So I was kind of depressed on the way home - I was

> thinking, " Great. I

> will eventually get my disability from Social

> Security and have all this

> unlimited time to do what I want, work on my model

> trains,

> whatever. Except I'll be BLIND! "

>

> I thought it an off the wall question when the

> rheumatologist earlier last

> week at my exam asked if I had been experiencing any

> infections. I wasn't

> sure what he meant and asked him, " You mean like a

> cold or flu? " He said

> well yeah but anything in general, too. I still

> wasn't really sure what he

> was getting at so I just said, " No. " Now I suppose

> I should call him and

> tell him about the eye thing.

>

> Other than that, life goes on. Celine is doing

> well. The younger daughter

> graduated high school in May and started working in

> a nursing home as a

> CNA. The elder daughter will start her final

> semester tomorrow at ISU and

> will finish up in December. I am still trying to

> get the Social Security

> Disability and my lawyer had my rheumy write a

> report on my condition to

> send some sort of judicial review board, but I

> haven't heard anything from

> anyone yet. I'll have to contact the lawyer and see

> what's what - AGAIN.

>

> Well that's enough for now. Y'all have a good, pain

> free day. Just wanted

> to check in, say " HI " , and ask about the eye thing.

>

> Be blessed!

>

> Kossart - RA, Type-2 Diabetes

> Peru, IL, USA

>

>

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

, it's great to hear from you, but I'm really sorry about your eye

and the worry it must be causing you.

I'm not sure what your exact diagnosis is, but maybe it's peripheral

ulcerative keratitis (PUK)?

http://www.emedicine.com/oph/topic544.htm

Or maybe some other type of keratitis:

http://blueprint.bluecrossmn.com/topic/topic100587048

" Corneal Ulcer " :

http://blueprint.bluecrossmn.com/topic/cornealulcer

Differential diagnosis of the red eye:

http://www.eyeweb.org/the_red_eye.htm

In any case, call your rheumatologist immediately so that he can adjust

your meds if necessary or recommend a second opinion with another

ophthalmologist (I'm assuming the guy you saw was an ophthalmologist).

I'm happy to hear that you and you family have been doing pretty well

otherwise. Good luck and keep us posted!

[ ] Update . . . and Question

>

>

> Hi all,

>

> Just popping in to say HI and let you all know how I have been coming

along

> these past months. I am still on the methotrexate and Celebrex and

feeling

> as close to normal as someone with RA can, I guess. My last couple

of

> visits to the rheumy were uneventful which is, I guess, to be

considered a

> blessing i disguise.

>

> My GP is trying to wean me off of taking insulin for the diabetes

which I

> only had to start taking because of the prednisone they put me on when

I

> was initially diagnosed with RA. It's hard to believe that it's been

two

> years now since the RA hit me all at once. Anyway, I am down to about

a

> dozen or less units of the insulin per day which is pretty good. He

now

> has me taking a single Glucovance pill in the morning at breakfast

> time. My blood sugars before dinner are usually about in the 80 to

120

> range, which is pretty much normal, but I can feel it, it seems when

it

> goes below 90 or so. Of course it will go up after eating and that is

what

> I am trying to use the insulin to counteract but two hours after

supper it

> is usually well under 200.

>

> Flares have been few and far between, especially the past few months.

I

> know this won't/can't last forever, but I am enjoying it while it does

last

> and thanking God for it, too. If something does act up, it usually is

just

> one joint and improves in a day or two. I have noticed that the

amount of

> time I can stand or walk around seems to be less, because of my knees,

feet

> and ankles. Seems they act up when you sit too long, and if you stand

too

> long. Kind of severely limits my options. 8^D

>

> The past two months were stressful because we had some major

construction

> going on around here - a new roof and all of the concrete as in

sidewalks,

> patio, and driveway replaced, too. Living on a corner lot in town,

you can

> imagine the amount of labor and material that went into the job. Oh

yeah,

> we also had new doors, windows and siding put on the garage. Heck no

I

> didn't do it myself - those days are over and the job was too big for

me to

> even fool myself into thinking I could do anyway. We were real glad

when

> the construction guys finally left and glad that the stress of it all,

> along with some problems that popped up along the way, haven't seemed

to

> make my RA worse.

>

> I am still going along trying to work in the basement here and there

in

> hopes of getting it prepared for putting in the model trains. I

pretty

> much stay at home but usually go out to visit a friend or two on

Friday

> evening and Saturday afternoon. I still get pretty fatigued, though,

in

> the afternoons and have to stop everything, lie down and nap. I have

tried

> to ignore it but it usually doesn't go away and I have to give in.

>

> Now I am going through a new trial and am wondering if any of you have

> heard or experienced this. Last Sunday my right eye just didn't feel

> right. It is hard to explain but every now and then it would feel

slightly

> irritated and water a little. I didn't think too much about it but by

this

> past Thursday, since it wasn't really feeling any better (though it

wasn't

> feeling any worse, either) I decided to visit the local eye doctor and

have

> him take a look. I got in that very afternoon and he said I had an

> ulcerated cornea (in my right eye) which was beginning to get

infected. He

> said that I may have had something in there that scratched it

recently, or

> that with the RA some of the medications tend to dry your eyes out

(though

> I hadn't really noticed this in my case) which makes the problem

easier to

> occur. He gave me a script for some antibiotic eye drops and told me

to

> put in a drop every hours for the next 24. I had to set a kitchen

timer

> all night to wake up and put in the drop. This doesn't make me too

popular

> with the better-half, but of course she understands.

>

> The eye doc had me come back the next day (Friday) to look at it and

said

> it looked a bit better. He then asked if I could come in on Saturday

> morning so he could check it again. The office isn't normally open

then

> but he said he would meet me there and open up. I remarked that he

seems

> to be following up on this pretty aggressively, and asked him if this

was a

> potential problem in the making. He said, " Oh yes, people have gone

blind

> from this. " I replied something about this all being caused by a

little

> speck of something in my eye I wasn't even aware of. He said

possibly, but

> more than likely the RA itself could be causing it to become inflamed,

or

> possibly the drying effect of the medications could cause the tissue

to

> easily tear. I hadn't heard of any of this before. Has anyone else.

>

> I asked him so what happens now. He said the antibiotics are a chance

for

> letting my body heal the problem by itself, but if that doesn't work

then

> they have to use, I think he said an anti-inflammatory, but that

causes

> something to change in the immune system which could be a problem.

So can

> someone tell me what's going on here? I wish I could remember EXACTLY

what

> he said but I'll just blame it on RA brain fog . . . OK?

>

> So I was kind of depressed on the way home - I was thinking, " Great.

I

> will eventually get my disability from Social Security and have all

this

> unlimited time to do what I want, work on my model trains,

> whatever. Except I'll be BLIND! "

>

> I thought it an off the wall question when the rheumatologist earlier

last

> week at my exam asked if I had been experiencing any infections. I

wasn't

> sure what he meant and asked him, " You mean like a cold or flu? " He

said

> well yeah but anything in general, too. I still wasn't really sure

what he

> was getting at so I just said, " No. " Now I suppose I should call him

and

> tell him about the eye thing.

>

> Other than that, life goes on. Celine is doing well. The younger

daughter

> graduated high school in May and started working in a nursing home as

a

> CNA. The elder daughter will start her final semester tomorrow at ISU

and

> will finish up in December. I am still trying to get the Social

Security

> Disability and my lawyer had my rheumy write a report on my condition

to

> send some sort of judicial review board, but I haven't heard anything

from

> anyone yet. I'll have to contact the lawyer and see what's what -

AGAIN.

>

> Well that's enough for now. Y'all have a good, pain free day. Just

wanted

> to check in, say " HI " , and ask about the eye thing.

>

> Be blessed!

>

> Kossart - RA, Type-2 Diabetes

> Peru, IL, USA

[Guest guest]

hi paul, glad to hear from you. i've had eye problems for several years. they

dx'ed glaucoma over 10 years ago. i've had 2 laser eye surgeries that didn't

help. so i take drops every night. i was really amazed to find out it was all

a part of ra too. for a long time i was worried i'd never see my son grow up.

he's going to be 19 soon. i don't mess around with my eyes. and yes i think

you should bring it up. hope you have continued success and maybe in the

winter you will be able tostart on those trains. kathy in il

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

Nice to hear from you. Sounds like you have been a pretty busy person

lately. I do get dry eyes. I am told that it is from the meds and is common

with RA. My doc advised me to carry a small vial of saline eye drops to keep

them moist when needed. I haven't had an eye infection in a few years, and

that was before I was diagnosed. But the one that I did have back then was

pretty bad. I couldn't see for a week. It was horrible. Anyway, I keep

the eye drops with me and use them as needed and this works for me. Hope the

antibiotic works for you.

Love and Hugs

Stacey in PA

[Guest guest]

At 11:28 PM 8/20/02, you wrote:

>Hi ,

>Nice to hear from you. Sounds like you have been a pretty busy person

>lately. I do get dry eyes. I am told that it is from the meds and is common

>with RA. My doc advised me to carry a small vial of saline eye drops to keep

>them moist when needed. I haven't had an eye infection in a few years, and

>that was before I was diagnosed. But the one that I did have back then was

>pretty bad. I couldn't see for a week. It was horrible. Anyway, I keep

>the eye drops with me and use them as needed and this works for me. Hope the

>antibiotic works for you.

>Love and Hugs

>Stacey in PA

Hi Stacey!

I went to the eye doc again yesterday (Monday) and he said that the eye was

greatly improved and was just about healed up. He doesn't want to see me

again until Friday and he told me to take the drops (antibiotic) only 3 or

4 times a day now. I also passed all this along to my rheumy's nurse and

she said she didn't think he would make any changes in my meds due to it

because the infection they are interested in with the methotrexate is

mainly in the respiratory system. Haven't heard any more so hopefully this

is the end of it.

Y'all keep prayin', though!

Kossart - RA, Type-2 Diabetes

Peru, IL, USA