reaction to drops

Quick question.  Several glaucoma meds list blurry vision as a side effect.   How does a doctor determine if drops are effecting vision?  Is there anything that would be visable to the doc during an exam?  You would think that if your vision declines by  several steps something would be visable.
What part of the eye is effected by the drops????? How???

Travatan PF-- Kosopt and Alfagan all blurred my vision yet nothing showed in my exams ( except declining visual acuity ) --Why doesn't it show up???  Virtually all the docs noted inflamation (inflammation) to varying degrees and my dry eye- but there is not even a mention about a possible  " toxic reaction " in their notes. My new doc , who has done wonders , Listed this as a possibility on my first visit and before he treated anything else
took me off all drops ( previous doc had me taking both Travatan and Kosopt at same time )  and flushed eyes ( motitoring eye pressures regularly ) and vision improved .

Also I have had some docs look at my eyes and mention dry eye ( without previous mention )
What do they see that they don't need to do a test???  ( one did a Shimer test and showed zero had to be peeled off )

Sorry an old auto mechanic and I guess to me the eyes should be like a bare or busted wire when there is a problem. Cut and dry-- I have learned the past several years that that is not the case .

[Michael J Kutryb, MD]

In cases like yours where patient is bothered by glaucoma drops in any way (blurry, scratchy eyes, wheezing, redness, irritation, sleepiness, dark circles under eyes) I try to reduce drops as much as possible and often perform SLT laser treatment as a "non-drop" way to reduce pressure.  It is very, very helpful in these type of cases.  I have seen situations like yours dozens and dozens of times before.  So, I 'm glad your new doctor is trying to treat the patient as a whole - not just the pressure.  Sometimes we can get so caught up in lowering the pressure with drops that we can make the patient miserable with side effects.  Good Luck and consider SLT laser if indicated.

MJK MD