Unusual, Painful Experience

[Jihm]

I went in for my usual shot (Eylea), but with a different doctor because of scheduling problems. I went through the usual steps: first the eye chart, pressure, etc., then on to the next room with the machine that takes images of the eyes, then they put me right in the room where they give the shots. (That in itself was unusual, because after the imaging they normally put me in a waiting room until the doctor is ready to see me.) Anyway, they put me in the chair, and put all the usual drops and "goop" in my eye. There I sat with my head tilted back in an awkward position, & all the "goop" in my eye, for half an hour waiting for the doctor. The pain I experienced after I finally got the shot was as if I had some sharp objects in my eye. I asked for and received a couple extra rinses of my eye, but it seemed to do no good. That pain persisted the rest of the day and all night. I don't think it was from the shot itself because the eye is not bloodshot. I was picking bits of solidified "goop" (I don't know what they use) out of my eye for a couple days. My theory is that the pain was caused because the "goop" had partially solidified, perhaps crystalized during the time between when they put it in my eye, and the doctor finally gave me the shot. I will make sure I don't get shots from that doctor in the future in any case. My usual doctor is so intent on treating as many patients as possible that he is never slow to arrive in the shot room. Any alternative theories or comments are welcome.

[Retired130]

I think you diagnosed the problem correctly.

I used to get some numbing drops & then a numbing shot about 5 minutes before the Eylea shot. Last time, I decided the numbing shot was too agrivating, so I asked for the numbing gel instead of the shot.

When my Retina specialist used the numbing gel on me (3 doses before the Eylea shot with the last one just minutes before the shot), I had a lot of residual gel in my eye even though I had the nurse do several rinses on it before I left. Before I left the office, the nurse had told me to rinse as often as I wanted or needed to with the "Natural Tears" drops, so that's what I did. When I got home, I went through 2 bottles of "Natural Tears" eye drops rinsing the eye out quite often for the next 2 days before I got all of the "goop" out.

Next Eylea shot, I am going back to the numbing shot as the numbing gel was more aggravating & for a longer period of time than the numbing shot.

[Jihm in reply to Retired130]

Thanks much for replying to my post. Sorry you had that experience! It sounds pretty close to my own.

[Tetrazzini]

I always blame the clamp! One option is to tahe a couple of painkillers before the shot which will kick in when you start to feel the effects of the jab.

[Jihm in reply to Tetrazzini]

IT could have been the clamp, as you suggest, the device that holds the eye open, that aggravated the eye too. They may have removed it clumsily. The jab itself never seems to bother me. Whatever it was, gel or clamp, I have never experienced such pain from getting an eye shot.

[fed13]

Jihm, I am so sorry. What a nasty experience. It might be worth telling your eye clinicf about it. Hopefully they will learn not to do this in future.

I find iodine was the culprit of my eye pain; but although I had told my clinic of the severe post injection pain, all that was done was that I was, (often reluctantly), given numbing drops to take home. A practice disapproved of by some in this forum.

I too was left for a long time; about 3 hours last time, after having an iodine drop put in my eye; and my eye, obviously very sensitised to iodine by this time, began to burn like crazy. Despite endless washouts, AND taking anaesthetic drops home; (tiny vial); they ran out, and the burning was intolerable.

I will now not let iodine anywhere near my eye, and have requested (as recommended on this forum), chlorhexidine. The doctor I saw in follow up and regaled the above to, seemed mildly surprised! You'd think that It was obvious I was sensitive to iodine, or had become so. When I originally mooted the idea I was allergic to iodine it was poo-hooed. "Oh; your eye would have blown up if you were".

Not so : it just burnt up! You/we have to educate the doctors sometimes; so Jihm do tell them of your experience...only thus can tey learn.

I hope this helps, and I am so grateful for all the help I get from this forum.

[Jihm in reply to fed13]

Thanks. I am grateful for the forum too. Very sorry to hear of your experiences with iodine - all that unnecessary pain! Fortunately, I will be back with my regular doctor, and his regular crew, for my next shot. Normally he appears in the room within 5 minutes of my eye being numbed by the tech. If something similar happens again, I'll know I have developed an allergy, or the techs have all become clumsy.

[Hidden]

Sounds like your ( and tettrazinis) eye dried out during the excessive wait. This exacerbates any iodine sensitivity. The pain is like arc eye ( welding without a mask!), like sand. Any scratch from the clamp also becomes super painful.

I've had good soothing with copious amounts of hylotear which is thicker than hypromellose drops.

Good luck for next time. If its late again ask for top up of anaesthetic and after inj ask for soothing drops after antibiotic drops and washout ( my clinic now give these routinely).

[Jihm in reply to Hidden]

Thank you very much for the good info, eyesright! My regular doctor has always come in to give the shot very shortly after my eye has been numbed. I hope this pattern will continue. I will find out in one month.

[fed13 in reply to Hidden]

Thanks eyesright: I'll stick to Hylotear, my clinic gave me them last time instead of Systane. Ironically just when I'm all "genned" up I have been given a stay of execution. It was found I haven't had a further bleed at my last OPD check up and scan. I am due to return for another check up in 4 weeks approx. I wish you all well!x

[tc68]

I live in Canada in a rural area - only 1 Dr. a 2 1/2 hour drive away does the shots. First time I saw him I had horrible pain and eye swelled up overnight. Woke in the middle of the night with such a searing pain in my eye I screamed - my daughter came running to see what was wrong. When I went for my second shot - I was told it was probably a reaction to the iodine. I asked him not to use it but he insisted they had to - to prevent infection. Had various small reactions over 2 years - then last 3 times my eye watered constantly and wouldn't stay open - so other eye closed too. Try sitting in your room for 10 hours without being able to open your eyes. Tried taping it shut and using an eye patch - nothing helped - so I just stopped going. 9 months later - the sight in that eye has stayed the same - blurry in the center - but - not any worse. I can take the pain of the needle (he doesn't freeze the eyeball first like my first Dr. used ot do - I had to move away from him) - but the torture afterwards is just too much!!

[Hidden in reply to tc68]

Unfortunately lots of us have been through the same thing t68 and it is horrendous . Heavy handed injectors scratching eye with clamp, eye left to dry out, iodine sensitivity. If a thorough washout and copious soothing drops for a few days dont help they can use chlorhexidine instead of iodine. It's not quite as good at cleaning the eye though and of course we want to avoid infection at all costs.

Keep checking your vision with the amsler grid, but realise there may be things going on you're not aware of unless you get properly checked out.

It's your choice of course but I think I'd have the expert checks and then make the decision each time as to inj or not. Best wishes going forward.

[Jihm]

Very sorry to hear of your awful experiences, tc68. The experience I posted about was my first excessively painful experience. Perhaps you should give a 3rd doctor a try if possible.

I don't think you can be sure how your eye is doing (leaking or not?) without an in depth exam, including the equipment that images your macula.

I wish you all the best!

[Rosalyn-helpline Partner]

Dear Jihm,

I have copied a link to our Pain after injections factsheet:

macularsociety.org/sites/de...

This may be useful to use as a discussion point with your ophthalmologist. It may be worth contacting them in advance of the next injection, so that they can ensure that the cause is identified and guarded against next time.

Kind regards,

Advice and Information Service

Macular Society

0300 3030 111

macularsociety.org

[Jihm in reply to Rosalyn-helpline]

Thank you very much!

[Jihm]

Update. I received another inj yesterday from my usual doctor - no problems at all. I learned from his main tech that the other doctor customarily makes patients wait numbed up in the chair for a long period of time, and that he uses a lot more idodine than my usual doctor. So, in this instance at least, the difference between pain and no pain was the doctor.