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[antiphon1]

Excellent news, redhound!

[onion]

Yay for good news!
And good to know that there are better, and more precise tests, than the puff test.

[voxprincipalis]

Glad to hear it!

VP

[biomancer]

That's great news, RedHound!

[wildwest]

I was just at the eye doctor yesterday and told that I have developed Glaucoma.  Evidently one's pressure reading should be under 21.  With the puff test, my eyes read 27 and 35.  He then did the more accurate test (where they numb the eye and put pressure on it with an instrument) and the readings were 22 and 23 (significantly lower).  (The 22 and 23 numbers were adjusted for thinner-than-usual corneas--up from 21 and 22).  I'm in my late 30s and wear contact lenses (near sighted with astigmatism) but have never, ever had any problems before.  I don't smoke, have never had high blood pressure, have been tested for thyroid problems, etc.

Spouse and I have had an extremely stressful year with him on the job market, and we are now getting ready to move to a new job.  There are money stresses related to the move.  However, the doctor says Glaucoma is not related in any way to stress, diet, heavy computer use, etc.  My research on the Web says otherwise.

In any case, the doctor didn't want to do anything with me, since I'm leaving for a new town in about two weeks.  But he stressed (to the point of being sensational about it) that I need to immediately find an opthomologist in my locale to get the full range of tests and some medication.  Evidently there isn't a single cure-all pharmaceutical?  Evidently one needs to go through all sorts of tests on fancy equipment and it takes time to get the medication right?

So I'm freaking out, and this whole thing is tapping into my usually hypocondriac nature.  I keep trying to test my peripheral vision, and I freak out when something doesn't look clear (which often happens, and always has, due to the nature of my contact lenses).  The doctor was this weird combination of sensational and dead-pan about the whole thing.  I was already worried about occasional peripheral neuropathy--and now this.  Makes me wonder if there is something seriously wrong with me.  For the most part, I feel good and eat well (despite being stressed).  (After a series of blood tests last year, the GP basically said I had some problems with anxiety; a good friend is convinced I will feel better if I give up gluten).

If Glaucoma isn't related to stress, then why do some of the Web articles talk about exercise, and how regular exercise has reduced eye pressure just as much as beta blockers in some patients.

Argh!   

[amlithist]

Just a comment:  I've always also had the puff test and been fine.  But my husband (just turned 51) was diagnosed with glaucoma about 3-4 years ago.  Apparently there are various kinds/causes?  (I haven't done my research on this--sounds awful, but at the time I had my hands full with Mom and, after going to the eye appts. with him I felt reassured enough that I haven't really worried about it much since).  He was working one day, and had an ongoing/increasing sense of having something in his eye, and as the morning went on, he said it seemed like he had a "shade" or "veil" over his vision in that eye.  He went to our long-time optometrist after work who did the puff test and looked inside his eye and said that he has a type of glaucoma caused by the pigmented part of his eye (iris?) deteriorating.  Hubby was referred to a nearby opthamologist who gave the same diagnosis and seemed similarly unconcerned, once Hubby started using drops nightly--after a week or so, the pressure went down, and he continues the drops and it stays down.  He now just calls our family eye dr. when his prescription runs out, gets it refilled, and all is well. (Though the drops are pricey--I know on one iteration of my school medical/Rx insurance, one refill cost something like $78 for a teeny-tiny bottle.  Our eye dr. gave him samples for awhile, then the Rx insurance changed and he again gets it for the $6 copay.)

I've always had horrible nearsightedness and astigmatism, and from a very young age.  During grades 4-11 or so, I was progressing so fast that I'd have to change glasses every 9 months, sometimes 6; I was scared to death I was going blind.  So I've always been religious about getting the eyes--and those of the spouse and kids--checked and taken care of.  As Dad used to say, they're the only ones I've got!

[biomancer]

WildWest, I would bet folding money that once you get this stressful time period behind you and your blood pressure returns to normal, your intraocular pressure will also return to normal.  Any optometrist/opthalmologist who does not believe that blood pressure affects intraocular pressure should be forced to go back to school.  Yes, there are multiple causes, but the correlation between high blood pressure and high intraocular pressure is a very strong one.

[wildwest]

Biomancer, thank you so much for giving me a little hope.  We should be all moved within a month, and then I will go about finding a new doctor in the new place.  I will be re-checked.

I should be so happy that spouse has graduated and found a job in a difficult market--and a job in the exact place we wanted.  But I am wracked by anxiety about the move, money issues, finding a job for myself, etc.  It is difficult saying goodby to friends we have made here.  I guess that is life.  I should get a little more serious about pursuing some kind of meditation--it seems to work for spouse. 

[katdo]

I know this is an old thread, but I also have concerns about my Opthamologist performing some unnecessary tests for glaucoma. I already had my eyes dialated. I have no family history of this, nor do I have high BP. I'm 48. He said my pressure is slightly higher in one eye and wants to do another pressure check, OCT and Pachymetry.  I'm always skeptical of more testing. He said there is no known nerve damage but he needs to rule it out. (I called back to get information for my insurance who will not cover this unless it's a medical necessity).