roclanda advice

[Rowan4]

Hello all, I’m looking for some advice for my MIL. She’s been using roclanda in both eyes for a few month now. In the past week or 2 the redness has gotten really bad and her eyes are watering a lot. She is upset about this understandably - the redness is very bad.

Is this normal? Has anyone had a similar experience and maybe can offer some advice? Thank you so much!

[KieranGlaucomaUK Administrator]

Hi there. As Roclanda contains a preservative it could be this that it causing the irritation. Alternatively, she could be experiencing an allergic reaction to the Roclanda. She will need to call the eye secretary at the hospital and explain that she is having this reaction and they will likely change her drops. In the meantime dry eye drops might help to alleviate this reaction. Also if she uses dry eye drops 20-30 minutes before the Roclanda it can protect the eye to hopefully further ease any more irritation. She can then use the dry eye drops throughout the day as needed.

[Rowan4 in reply to KieranGlaucomaUK]

Thank you so much for your reply! I really appreciate it. When you say dry eye drops do you mean lubricating drops like hylo forte? Thanks again

[KieranGlaucomaUK Administrator in reply to Rowan4]

Yes exactly 🙂

[Laura7777]

Hello

I have been using Roclanda for 9 months and I too get the redness and watery eyes (my eyes have also taken on a sunken appearance).

For me, the redness in the eye calms down as the hours go by but the whites are never actually white anymore. Dry eye drops, as suggested by Keiran above, are helpful, as is a cool compree on the eyelids, but they don't cure the problem. I also find that the rims of my eyes are red all the time and I disguise this with a light covering of eyeliner.

As to the watering, I find that also calms down as the hours go by although my eyes have generally become more sensitive to watering than they were before the Roclanda.

I found that experimenting with the time of day I take the Roclanda made a big difference for me. My consultant initially told me to take it in the morning but I found that too difficult to function with so I changed it to last thing at night so the worst of the sideeffects hit me during the night when I'm asleep. I told my consultant what I had done and he was of the view that as long as the drops were 24hrs apart and they were taken regularly and at the same time, it would be OK. My eye pressures were not affected by changing the time of taking the drops.

I have been taking various eye drops for nearly 40 years and Rocalnda is by far the most uncomfortable drop I have encountered. However, I will willingly put up with the side effects to save what is left of my eyesight.

I comiserate with your MIL and wish her luck.

Best Wishes, Laura