Member Comments are provided by individuals and reflect their personal opinions only. Under NO circumstances should you act on any advice or opinion posted in this forum. ALWAYS check with your personal physician before taking any action regarding your health! MedHelp International and our partners, sponsors and affiliates have no obligation to monitor any comments posted on this site, or the content and/or accuracy of such exchanges. MedHelp International does not endorse the views of any user.
Eye Care Archive (Expert Forum)
strobing light vision, right eye enlarged optical nerve
Our Ask A Doctor Ophthalmology Forum is where you can post your question and receive a personal answer from physicians affiliated with the American Academy of Ophthalmology.
strobing light vision, right eye enlarged optical nerve
by lindakat, Apr 16, 2007 12:00AM
I went to my opthemologist Last Monday for a regular check up. I have never really been happy with my vision. Under certian light conditions it appears as if everything is blinking. Well after my appointment, the problem has gotten worse. I was contributing this to light sensitivety and astigmatism. I thought maybe all the tests they did caused me to have migrains and that was the problem. I had a migraine on Wednsday and Friday. I no longer believe this is a astigmatism because if I close one eye it does not go away. I had also thought that perhaps it was the new contacts, except that they are the exact power, but the base curve changed. I tried putting my old contacts in, and I had the same problem just looked a little different. 8.4 base curve +6.00 both eyes. Old contacts are 9.1 base curve +6.00 both eyes.
The other thing that bothers me is the opthemologist showed me the pictures of the insides of my eyes. My left eye being normal, and my right eye having an enlarged optical nerve. I think enlarged is a nice way of putting it. My left optical nerve looked like a light purple color and was spread out. My right optical nerve came out bunched together then spread out. It looked to be at least 4 times the size in comparison to my left eye and a dark purple and red color. The opthemologist said that he had compared it to a picture of my right eye from three years ago and it hadn't changed. His explination was that is just the way I am.
I am concerned with the fact that I am having more trouble now then I did before. I know that it is not just in my imagination, because I am even having trouble reading what I am typing. Oh also I have had glasses since I was 2, and my mother had cancer in her right eye when she was little.
The other thing that bothers me is the opthemologist showed me the pictures of the insides of my eyes. My left eye being normal, and my right eye having an enlarged optical nerve. I think enlarged is a nice way of putting it. My left optical nerve looked like a light purple color and was spread out. My right optical nerve came out bunched together then spread out. It looked to be at least 4 times the size in comparison to my left eye and a dark purple and red color. The opthemologist said that he had compared it to a picture of my right eye from three years ago and it hadn't changed. His explination was that is just the way I am.
I am concerned with the fact that I am having more trouble now then I did before. I know that it is not just in my imagination, because I am even having trouble reading what I am typing. Oh also I have had glasses since I was 2, and my mother had cancer in her right eye when she was little.
Doctor's Answer
by Forum-OD-MP, Apr 16, 2007 12:00AM
'I no longer believe this is a astigmatism because if I close one eye it does not go away.'
sorry, but that 'test' is not diagnostic of anything.
'I am even having trouble reading what I am typing.'
sounds refractive to me. either uncorrected astigmatism, over/or undercorrected hyperopia, or emerging presbyopia (if you are over say 35). none of your complaints sound to me like they would be caused by a difference in appearance of any optic nerve anything.
second opinion?
sorry, but that 'test' is not diagnostic of anything.
'I am even having trouble reading what I am typing.'
sounds refractive to me. either uncorrected astigmatism, over/or undercorrected hyperopia, or emerging presbyopia (if you are over say 35). none of your complaints sound to me like they would be caused by a difference in appearance of any optic nerve anything.
second opinion?
Okay I misunderstood what an astigmatism is. (I tried reading more about it.)
My opthemologist speaks as if he can not correct my astigmatism with contacts, is this true?
Should I at all be concerned or is there anything to watch out for, when it comes to my right optic nerve looking so much different from “normal”?
Is it normal for a base curve to change from 9.1 to 8.4, and does it really make much of a difference? I am trying to understand what could have caused my vision to get/seem so progressively worse so quickly.