Please help! Burning eyes won't go away!

[Martz22]

Yikes! I can't get any relief! My eyes are not dry but they burn like crazy and I can't seem to figure out what is causing it. Dr. said I may have corneal neuropathy and I've been fitted for a mini-scleral, but waiting for it to come in. I have been wearing onion googles since last Saturday in the house and 7eye glasses while outside and driving. I've only been using autologous drops only a few times a day because my eyes don't feel dry just very red and did I mention they burn like hell?

I tried Lotemax and it instantly made my eye SUPER red and after 2 hours it's still pretty red and still burning.

I used my new quartz googles last night and when I woke up my eyes were super red and burning but very moist. They were also this way when I used the tranquileyes goggles.

They do not itch so the Dr. doesn't suspect any allergies. I have no staining and all test were good. My eyes were originally a little dry and inflammed from overuse of contacts so I was on a long course of lotemax. They did get better for a bit (2-3 weeks) but Now 9 months later I can barely tolerate being without ice on them 24/7

Someone please give me some advice?? What haven't I tried?

[SunshineinCalgary]

When you said your eyes are moist but burning, did you know excessive tears can be a symptom of dry eyes too? Sounds like you have inflammation with your cornea? Have you tried anti-inflammation medication orally?

Not sure if you want to try acupuncture. I got some temporary relief with acupuncture as it improves blood circulation to your eyes.

Hope you'll get better.

[Martz22]

It's not excessive tearing just moist lower lashes, and an adequate pool in my lower lid with occasional small tears, more wetness coming from the corner of my eye closest to my nose. My eyes don't feel dry, just burn.

What type of anti-inflammatory are you talking about. I'm on Oracea (doxy), Omega 3's, anything else I should try?

I did try acupuncture but it was not successful :-( Perhaps I will try it again in the future but right now I'm trying to keep my driving around to a minimum since I have to small kids 4 &7.

thank you for replying!! I REALLY appreciate it!

[SAAG]

You pm'd me a copy of your question, but since you're still following this thread, I'll just answer here.

This post may be useful:

http://www.dryeyezone.com/talk/showt...ght=#post70128

That's what helped me when I had eyes that burned pretty much 24/7 and drops weren't helping.

Hang in there! Things will get better eventually...

[Martz22]

SAAG- You are wonderful, so sweet and soooo helpful. Thank you from the bottom of my heart

The only thing that has given me a few moments of reprieve was cold Unisol 4. Thanks Rebecca for that! I know I can't do it too often, don't want to throw off the PH in
my eyes.

Thanks to all for your suggestions, keep em' coming. I'm willing to try anything!!!

[MaryVa61]

You said the doc didn't suspect allergies because your eyes don't itch, just burn. I was told the same thing by 3 ophthalmologists in 2010 and 2011 and by an allergist, but my problem did turn out to be allergy (type IV hypersensitivities to some chemicals). It was only after getting the allergy problem under control that the pain was reduced enough for me to feel the itching. I think severe burning, stinging pain covers up the itching sensation.

It was a dermatologist who diagnosed my problem, after doing TRUE tests. My type of allergic reactions last for several days, so it's otherwise impossible to figure out what the reaction is caused by. Especially since the reactions don't start until a day or two after exposure to the allergen. So the tests are necessary.

It's just a thought. Getting the right diagnosis helped me soooo much!

Mary in VA

[Martz22]

Thanks so much for your reply!!!

The allergy issue has crossed my mind several times but has been ruled out by my corneal specialist and my dermatologist. I guess I could ask my allergist about it. I do have some small spots of rosacea on my face but it's controlled with allergy meds and Oracea. I'm still takeing the Oracea because CS thought maybe ocular rosacea but since Oracea has made no differnece he thinks not.

My problem started because I wore my contacts too much. It started as mild dry eye and inflammation but has since escalated to a major problem. The official diagnosis is now Corneal Neurapathy. Although I don't think CN would cause my eyes to be so red but maybe I'm wrong.

I'm already on allergy medicine (have been most of my life) and have had loads of allergy testing done. Maybe it's time to re-do some of the testing. I've had periods of time when my eyes don't burn and I was taking the same meds I'm taking now, the only thing new is Gabapentin. It could be causing some dryness but I wouldn't think it would cause the burning. Then again who knows at this point.

Again, my true problem at this point is not dryness. As I type this I have to take off my mositure chamber goggles to wipe a small tear that is ready to drip out of my eye. Sincemy initial dryness that sent me to the dr. back in July I've rarely (twice) had the sensation of dryness. I don't have the feeling of sandy, gritty or foreign object in my eye.

What did you do to get the allergies under control? did you use eye drops or oral meds. I went off my oral allergy meds for a time to see if it would make a difference with my eyes and it did not, but boy did my other allergy symptoms flare up. I have bad eczema amd aching sinuses when not on allergy med.

[SAAG]

You said the doc didn't suspect allergies because your eyes don't itch, just burn. I was told the same thing by 3 ophthalmologists in 2010 and 2011 and by an allergist, but my problem did turn out to be allergy (type IV hypersensitivities to some chemicals)...It was a dermatologist who diagnosed my problem, after doing TRUE tests.

What kind of tests did the dermatologist do?

[Hopeful2]

Hi Martz,

I would have to say that I too feel that my eyes are not overly dry, except for during the night. My main complaint is that my eyes sting, or burn. I have a fair amount of tearing and during the day I see a fair tear lake on my lower lid, especially on the nasal sides. I believe that these are all signs of meibomian gland dysfunction and subsequent eye inflammation.

Last week I started a course of dextramethosone (preservative free, compounded by local pharmacy). I could feel a difference within two days. . . a lot less burning. Now after a week, I barely feel any burning, and my eyes are becoming even more moist. I did however think that my eyes were overall more dry at about the third day in. I am due to start restasis in one week as the course with steroids is just to bring the inflammation down to a level that restasis can actually do something. . . I am cautiously optimistic.

[Rebecca Petris]

Hi there,

Burning is the one symptom most likely to be shared by people on this board... just food for thought... though everyone's clinical situation (from dry to very wet, and disease states all over the map) varies so greatly. It's a classic symptom of ocular surface disease that does not always suggest something specific as cause.

From what you describe though it reminds me a lot of the situations which "back in the old days" (i.e. 10+ years ago on the internet) we called toxic tears. Almost feels like you're allergic to your own tears, hence the relief from cold saline rinses. - What to do, what to do - that you haven't already done/aren't doing! Sigh. When you do get those mini sclerals - I know that the fit optimizing will be taking all the attention at first but I'd advise also paying close attention to how the saline itself feels on your eye with prolonged contact. (Thinking of the extreme sensitivity issue going on... triggered memories of a couple of other cases, might be worth having a chat about sometime.)

Hang in there. The answers WILL come, in time.....

[Martz22]

Update:

Thanks to everyone for your suggestions and ideas!

The last 2 days have been tolerable. Went to see Dr. today because I had a ton of light green junk coming out of my eye in the mornings. No infection just an excess of the mucuos we have naturally in our tears. I have a TON of tears since using the moisture chamber goggles, I"m also quad plugged so the mucous and tears have no where to go, tears run down mucous pools. Small amount of inflammation which I'm treating with lotemax ointment since it's PF. My TBUT was a 10 today. He thinks there is a small amount allergies (seasonal) which will be treated by my allergy meds and the lotemax.

He told me to STOP all dry eye related drops and meds (no, evoxac,gabapentin,AT,serum drops etc) except for omega's, turmeric and of course lotemax. He said we need to let my own tears try to get my tear film back to a more natural baseline. All of which I had already decided before going to see him but was glad to hear it from him. Sometimes I think we get so frantic to take away the pain that we don't realize all the things we're doing are actually making things worse.

Anyway the burning is a wee bit better, probably because I'm not putting drops in every 15 minutes. As much as I hate them, I think these onion goggles might be doing something for me. The 7eye sunglasses (Briza) are super cute, I wore them when I was with a bunch of my friends and noone noticed that they were moisture chamber glasses until I told them. They do make driving a bit more tolerable as well.

Thanks again to everyone! It takes a village to make our eyes feel better doesn't it????

I will keep you posted....
Cari

[MaryVa61]

Hi again.

In response to your questions, it wasn't meds that made my eyes better. In fact it was eliminating any meds that contained BAK and eliminating the sources of my chemical allergens that did the trick. The allergens were the bigger problem, but the BAK is bad too. I do occaisionally use Similasin Allergy Eye Relief, but nothing gets rid of the problem for me other than avoiding certain chemicals.

The tests I had were T.R.U.E. tests. The substances are applied to your back, then you have to see the doctor again twice, 2 days after and 4 days after, for the results to be read. If you google "TRUE test panel allergens" you can look on their website to see the list of substances they test for. If you click on the name of a substance there, it takes you to a fact sheet that lists the kinds of things you have to eliminate from your environment in order to get better.

I had very gunky eyelids in the morning for many years, in addition to daytime stinging, burning and dryness. But I eventually also developed a foreign body sensation and grittiness, filaments, frequent styes, etc. And I had Superior Limbic Keratoconjunctivitis for several years (also have a thyroid condition). And for years my lids were puffy in the AM but for some reason that eventually stopped, though my eyes were still bad.

The tests are a lot of trouble, but there's no pain or needles and it's well worth it if you turn out to have type IV allergies.

Feel free to private message me if you need for details.

Mary

[SAAG]

Thanks for the info on the testing you had Mary!

[MaryVa61]

Sure thing SAAG. If you want more details, private mail me. It may take me a few days, but I'll answer.

Mary