Sore eyes and light sensitivity

[pandacat2]

Hi there,

So quick (ish) back story. I have Hashimotos, diagnosed late 2019. Treated with levo slowly increasing to 150mcg daily by March 2021 with various ups and downs in fatigue, dizziness and foot pain in between. Around this time i started experience photosensitivity and sore eyes (my eyes have always been a bit watery in the morning or cold air which optician told me was dry eye, i assumed probs hypothyroid related). I went to have my eyes checked as the floaters i can now see basically all the time were bothering me and I wanted to be sure there wasn't anything seriously wrong with my eyes. Optician gave me the all clear, could see the floaters but wasn't concerned about them. Perhaps i should have followed this up with my gp but I was struggling with her at the time as my thyroid medication wasn't helping but she didn't have any alternative options.

After thinking for a long time this was B6 toxicity from a supplement i'd been taking I realised it was probably actually Thyroid Eye Disease but not very bad TED and with proper medication and stopping smoking (i didn't smoke loads but i did smoke a bit and regularly) it would probably clear up on it's own.

I started taking T3 along with the levo in August 2021 and got to an appropriate does in Nov 2021, I feel much much better not 100% but life is worth living again (hurrah!). However my eyes aren't really improving. My job requires that I look at a screen every day and as a designer/illustrator it's quite important that I can see colour correctly. I mostly have the brightness way down and blue light blocked and also use glasses that block blue light.

Any ideas on what I can do to improve this situation? Do you think I should ask for a referral to an eye specialist? Any help much appreciated.

Recent test results Nov 2021:

TSH 0.01 (0.27-4.2)

T3 5.78 (3.1-6.8)

T4 18.3 (12-22)

TgAb 143 (<115)

TPO 103 (<34)

CRP 0.39 (0 - 5)

Vitamin D 79.3 (50-200)

Ferritin 92 (13-150)

Folate 16.19 (>3.8)

Active B12 92.9 (37.5 - 118)

[Sparklingsunshine]

HiI had exactly the same issue, sore dry eyes, and not being able to look at bright lights, like TV screens. I ended up at eye casualty because it was sudden and my mum has glaucoma and macula degeneration. I wanted to make sure it wasn't serious.

I was diagnosed with dry eyes due to tear film insufficiency. I asked her why and she said it could be related to my thyroid although it tends to be hyperactive patients who get eye problems more often.

Menopause can cause dry eyes, and age. Allergies, central heating, a humidifier might help. There are also certain autoimmune conditions as well, like Sjogrens syndrome. The doctor suggested using long lasting moisturising eye drops and taking frequent breaks from looking at screens.

[shaws Administrator]

Our eyes can be affected and this is a link:-

healthline.com/health/dry-e...

I have blepharitis too and I have eye drops and I also buy blephaclean for daily cleaning eylids etc. There are 20 to a pack. I half one and use for two eyelids.

[Lulu2607 in reply to shaws]

Thanks Shaws. That's a useful article. I've been on levo for 12 months (autoimmune, hypo) and the last couple of months I wake with very sore eyes and struggle to open them. They're not sticky as in blepharitis but it seems they've been watering during the night and are now sticky with dried tears. I'm not sure eye drops would help while I'm sleeping would they as I'm assuming they give temporary relief, but I'll look into it.

[shaws Administrator in reply to Lulu2607]

Maybe check your eyes with a local optician.

Optometrists are highly trained to recognise abnormalities and conditions that could be causing your eye problems. They will prescribe and fit glasses and contact lenses, and, if necessary, they will refer you to a GP or a hospital eye clinic for further investigations.

[Lulu2607 in reply to shaws]

Thanks. I'm overdue for a check up.

[PurpleNails Administrator]

GPs, opticians and even specialist are very poor at understanding & recognising Potential TED. Many discount TED unless you have Graves (confirmed with TRab or TSI antibodies). Although there can be cases in those who are euthyroid & do not form antibodies.

This charity has excellent information on all things related to thyroid eye disease (TED) tedct.org.uk. (They also have Facebook page & advice line). They can likely recommend a specialist near to you.

Things you can do are take 200mcg of selenium supplements daily, reduce to 100mcg after 6 months, you can buy over the counter. Check the label for absorbable forms, selenium l-selenomethionine and yeast bound selenium are best, avoid selenite and selenate.

You may find warm compresses helpful and gentle fingertip massage toward lash line. This unclogs any meibomian glands which may be blocked contributing to dry eyes problem.

Using preservative free eye lid wipes and drops & sunglasses when outside.

[asiatic]

As someone with TED fortunate enough to be treated at a specialised TED clinic I would advise it is essential to find your nearest clinic through TEDct and ask your GP for a referral. I too am very photo sensitive and have changes to my colour vision. The latter is monitored regularly to check for pressure on my optic nerve. Dry eyes can be treated but damage to optic nerve would be irreversible

[Buddy195 Administrator]

I have TED with Hashimotos & have found that I need to wear reactive glasses to help with photo sensitivity, have a larger pc screen & dimmable lighting. I take lutein & zeazanthin;eye complex 7 on Amazon to help with overall eye health. I use HycoSan or Hyloforte preservative free drops regularly. Very best wishes.

[pandacat2]

Thank you for all your replies i'm already using hycosan eye drops ( I think i probably need to use them more regularly) and taking selenium every day. I've got the xailin night gel too which is really hard to put in but defos helps.

Had anyone recovered from this? Also is it likely to be TED? Perhaps that is a question for my dr but she thought I'd end up with TED from taking T3 which is clearly incorrect. I guess it might be time to request another referral.

Will ask the TED charity for advice too.

Thanks for your help, in a way it's just good to know i'm not on my own with this!

[adin]

hm 🤔 I'm in the same situation . when I was on ndt the eyes problem was wanish.