painful eye

[Pasjc]

I have RA and PA Im still recovering from phumonia and PE afterknee replacementin February. I also have a very painful/red left eye ive had antibiotic cream and gel 3times ive been told as I have RA it's to be expected. Ive tried bathing with hot water which gives comfort but doesn't help the healing. Im very reluctant to go to the GP does anyone know of an over the counter product please xx

[springcross]

Hi Pasjc. You need to go back to your GP as this needs sorting. If the GP can't help, ask to be referred to an ophthalmologist at the local eye hospital or you could go to the A & E department there which would probably be much quicker than waiting for a referral appointment. Good luck and I hope you get it sorted.

[Pasjc in reply to springcross]

Thank you good advice il try A&E better than GP

[bpeal1 in reply to Pasjc]

A walk in clinic would probably much more appropriate and quicker than A&E if there’s one near you.

[Amnesiac3637]

Try a pharmacist if you’re reluctant to go to your GP. It may be something or nothing but don’t leave it. Eyes are not to be messed with! Good luck, hope you get relief soon.

[sunnyweek]

I went to an optician with a red eye and she sent me to eye casualty. Its possible you may need steroid drops.

[AgedCrone]

Why don’t you speak to your pharmacist …they are the people who know all the new medications for things like your problem….& they will know which drugs you are already on.

Hope it clears up soon.

[Fruitandnutcase]

To be honest I would go and see a your local optometrist. I really don’t think most GPs know all that much about eyes. Opticians have trained for years to recognise eye conditions and are far more likely to know what the problem is and point you in the right direction.

A lot of them can refer you directly to hospital. If the antibiotics you’ve been given haven’t worked perhaps they are not the right treatment.

[Kags1068]

Hi Pasj

I'm sorry to hear you are having an issue with your eye, especially on top of everything else you are dealing with at present. I've had a lot of eye problems related to RA, and one thing I've learned is to never ignore a painful, red eye. It can mean a number of things, or hopefully, nothing. Like Fruit and Nut case, I'm a bit concerned that if the repeated antibiotic treatment hasn't worked, then it may not be the correct treatment. Usually eye infections clear quite quickly with antibiotic drops/ointment. I'm not sure what the person meant who told you that these things are to be expected as you have RA! Not very helpful at all. If they just meant that in terms of you having dry eyes due to RA, it makes a bit of sense, but still incredibly unhelpful. If you do have dry eyes and use drops, please use them as much as necessary- it's very important to keep the eye(s) moist. Please ensure the drops are preservative free too.

I'm afraid you probably need to get your eye checked out properly which I know will be a pain for you. In my experience GP's don't generally know much about things like this. If there's such a thing close to you, the ideal thing would be to contact or visit an eye casualty. Lots of hospital's do have them, and in my experience a general casualty will more often than not pass you over to them anyway. I'm pretty sure your eye will need examining with a slit lamp at the very least. As Sunnyweek says, there's a chance you may need steroid drops, and it really needs an eye department to prescribe the appropriate strength etc if necessary, and keep a check on things. There isn't anything I could think of you could buy over the counter to try if I'm honest, and I really wouldn't recommend doing that while you don't know what the issue is. I hope this may help, and please do let us know how you get on.

Best wishes X🤞

[Pasjc in reply to Kags1068]

Hi Kags1068 thanks for replying it was actually my GP made the comment about its to be expected with RA. Not far from me there is an A&E for opthalmic ive decided to go there hopefully tomorrow. Thank you again ill let you know. Xx

[Kags1068 in reply to Pasjc]

Thanks for your reply. Not the most helpful comment your GP could have made, eh?🙄 Still, I suppose like the rest of us, they must make say things without thinking about them properly sometimes.

I'm really pleased to hear you are going to visit the opthalmic A&E tomorrow. I know it's a pain, but worth it for the peace of mind, and chances are, if you went elsewhere first, you'd quite probably end up there anyway! That's something I quickly learned.

One more thing I've just thought of. It may be worth looking the unit up online, or alternatively phoning first, just in case they've changed the way the operate since covid. For instance, I think with ours now, rather than just show up, you phone first and they then tell you a time to come in so there's not too many people there at once. Obviously it may still be a walk-in as all these units/hospitals have found their own way around things, but it may be worth checking before you set off.

Yes, please do let us know and I hope it all goes well. X😊🤞

[Pasjc in reply to Kags1068]

I will thank you 😊

[Kags1068 in reply to Pasjc]

😊

[Lizard28]

I’d go to your local optician as my pharmacist couldn’t give me anything without seeing an optician, my GP won’t see eye problems either. If I hadn’t already been a patient at the hospital, he would have referred me as well. Optician gave me a prescription after examining my eyes.

[OneLove2019]

Oh no--could be iritis-- a bout with iritis, which is how I was diagnosed. See your eye doctor ASAP...

[PSAWarrior28]

Like most have said on here, you need to see an ophthalmologist at your local hospital. Its super important to get it seen to sooner rather than later. I had the same issue 2 years on, still battling to bring flare under control. Its important its tackled early.

My local hospital eye casualty, I had to call in advance but was always seen on the day.

Good luck and let us know how you get on.

[Vixen2]

Hi Pasjc. I’ve had RA for 30 yrs. plus i have 2 chronic eye conditions. Glaucoma & something called Iritis. Iritis is inflammation inside the eye. Which seriously affects the vision & causes throbbing, aching, burning symptoms. The first time i had it. I had to go to my local optician. She knew i had Iritis straight away., Told me to go to my local hospital. I had to have an injection in the eye. 30 yrs later. I’ve had so many more injections & operations. I’ve been under Moorfields Eye Hospital all that time. I’m sick of steroid eye drops. I must have had millions.

I hope you haven’t got either of my eye conditions. The Iritis came with the RA. It’s called Uveitis. Good luck x

[Pasjc in reply to Vixen2]

Oh dear poor you I hope so too xx

[Jessica32]

Hi I had the same problem recently and was seen by a nurse practitioner at the surgery. She immediately sent me to the eye clinic at the hospital where I was diagnosed with Uveitis and given steroid drops. This is common with RA alas and if not treated can lead to blindness! Not trying to worry you but it is urgent that you are checked out at the hospital. Make sure you tell them you have RA.

All the best.

[Pasjc in reply to Jessica32]

Thank you im going the hospital Thursday I'm on antibiotics drops which don't finish till then but they've made no difference so far xx

[Jessica32 in reply to Pasjc]

Great! Take care and let us know how you get on. Xx

[Luludean]

I have this too , painful. Dry eye!! Blephasol

Lumecare Carbomer, ointment

Sustsbe , dry eye drops.

Mine is dry eye , mot infection . Prople with R A snd P A get it . Sometimes I can’t see straight , ended up in Addenbrookes emergency eye clinic and Dr there explained condition to me .

[Luludean]

Sorry , Systane “dry eye drops”. Dry eye problem is a side efect of R A , psoriatic arthritis snd Sorgens syndrome.

Hope thes suggestions help . L

[Evie3]

Poor you…a lot going on🥲. I worked in a Drs surgery in a past life and we were told anyone with an eye complaint needed to b seen asap.

[Pasjc in reply to Evie3]

The good old days hey thank you for replying x

[Golden87]

Hi I had the same thing. It was during covid and my eye went very blurry too. The doctors said that they didn’t do eyes so I went to the opticians who said that I had a massive ulcer in my eye. I was sent as an emergency to the eye hospital to try and get my sight back. Unfortunately every time my arthritis flairs it also Causes inflammation in my eye whixh means I have lots of ulcers. Please get checked out before you do more damage!

[Pasjc in reply to Golden87]

Thank you so much I spoke to my pharmacist who said I have to wait till Thursday when the antibiotics drops are finished but I'll be there early Thursday x

[Song29]

Get it checked out, could be uveitis. If you Google hospitals with eye casualty theres a search option on nhs site. If there’s not one local to you or you can’t get there call your gp who can refer you to a local eye casualty dept to be seen on the same day. My local hospital operates an eye casualty dept in out patients but it’s referral only. As I was a frequent visitor to them before starting biologics I’ve got their direct number to book myself in and bypass the GP’s. They also advised me that if I start with symptoms out of office hours the closest hospital with a 24hr eye A&E as the sooner treatment is started the better the outcome. Uveitis is what started my diagnosis with Spa. And not to have had it in over a year since starting biologic therapy is a blessing I’m truly thankful for.

[Pasjc in reply to Song29]

Thank you will act on the great advice here xx

[Song29 in reply to Song29]

Can I just add when I had the inflamed eye for the first time my gp told me to book an eye test, I did and they just prescribed dry eye drops. Two weeks later returned to gp as getting worse. He suggested it was conjunctivitis as my eye was very watery. I said no there’s no secretions and when my eye focuses or the light gets brighter it’s quite agonising. By this point I was wearing sunglasses indoors. So he reluctantly referred me that day, and as they say the rest is history. I’d never heard of inflamed eyes or inflammatory arthritis until I was seen. Good luck, an update if you get chance would be great as there are several eye conditions related to RA.

[Rupert2001]

Hope you managed to get booked into an urgent ophthalmology appointment today. Since Covid, in my area, you can no longer just turn up to Eye A&E, you ring a tel number to be triaged. This actually works better as there is less waiting in the dept. I have used the system twice and it was excellent. Your GP won’t have equipment to check your eye out, especially to look for signs of inflammation but they could have pointed you in the direction of an urgent eye clinic in your area.I have had episcleritis a few times over the years, most recently when they tried to reduce frequency of rituximab because of Covid. I needed steroid eye drops but the inflammation is under control with Hylo eye ointment at night and Hylo drops during the day for dryness in combination with my rituximab infusions for RA. Sometimes the inflammation can be more serious than episcleritis but your eye department will be able diagnose and treat appriately.

[oldtimer2]

Here in Wales the best person to contact would be the local optician! They have an arrangment with the NHS to examine and refer urgent cases and do so most efficiently in my experience.