Glaucoma and hayfever nasal spray

[twentytwenty]

Excellent forum, thanks; I can't understand why I haven't found it previously.

I have glaucoma in one eye, IOP in both eyes was previously managed by bimatoprost / timolol eye drops. My IOP followed the familiar path of slowly increasing over the years, commenced treatment with bimatoprost / timolol eyedrops, IOP reduced for a while ( a few years) and then climbed again, I recently had drainage stents fitted to both eyes = no more bimatoprost / timolol drops (currently), IOP ok (currently) .

I avoided hayfever nasal spray (corticosteroid) when I was taking the bimatoprost / timolol drops. Now that I'm currently drop-free, is there a meaningful risk if I use hayfever nasal spray.

I recognise that I should ask my consultant this question when I next see him , but I've received conflicting views about this from several medical people over the years; it would be useful to know what advice other glaucoma patients have received, thanks.

[Trish_GlaucomaUK Partner]

Hello, If a person has primary open angle glaucoma, normal tension glaucoma or ocular hypertension, using hayfever medication is normally ok. People with angle closure glaucoma or narrow angles have to be more cautious.

Before trying any other medication, whether this is prescribed or over the counter, we always recommend that you check with your glaucoma consultant first, especially where it mentions precautions regarding glaucoma, or anything that can affect ones eyesight.

[twentytwenty in reply to Trish_GlaucomaUK]

Thanks for the reply Trish, I'll see my consultant within a couple of weeks, so I'll ask him then.

[twentytwenty in reply to twentytwenty]

To update this, my consultant tells me that I can use the nasal spray.

[Iona57]

Hi TwentyTwenty,

I have normal tension glaucoma in both eyes. I'm on bimatoprost once a day in my left eye. I had a Hydrus shunt op in my right eye last December. Pressure still not low enough so dorzolamide three times a day was reintroduced in March, and then bimatoprost once a day added in June. If the pressure isn't down to around 10 by end of July, trabeculectomy will be next step.

I asked my consultant at my recent appointment about steroid nasal spray as I get hayfever, and he said to try to avoid using it if possible, because steroids can raise eye pressure. If I remember rightly, he said it would be ok to take it occasionally, if I was desperate. However, he thought the problem was that you have to take it consistently to build up the protective

effect. It isn't really designed to work as a one-off spritz.

I'm already taking an inhaler twice daily to manage asthma, which contains steroids, so I guess it's best to avoid adding to the steroid load.

I guess it's going to be down to your individual situation with your glaucoma and the risk/ benefit analysis.

Good luck with your enquiry. I hope you're not suffering too much with the hayfever at the moment!

[twentytwenty in reply to Iona57]

Thanks Iona57. As a teenager, I was told that I would grow out of hayfever, that was a few decades and I'm still sniffing