Corneal Abrasion (11 days later)

[JohnValle]

Hello,

I wanted to get an opinion about the blurred vision of my right eye where the corneal abrasion had occured. I hit my eye when the wind blew and had the aglet of my hood string poke me directly in the eye. I was given antibiotics and tear drops initially by my optometrist. After a week, it felt better but my vision was still blurry with virtually no improvement on visual acuity. I went to an ophthalmologist for a second opinion but all she did was prescribed over the counter sodium chloride drops (Muro 128 I think was the brand) and said just keep using it for another 3-4 weeks. Is this normal for my case? She also kept telling me I may have had astigmatism I never had known before until the injury happened but then proceeded to talk about buying prescription glasses or contacts. Is it her just making sure I come back to get a prescription from her? And is there a general timeline to expect of when my visual acuity will return to normal. I had 20/20 vision on both eyes before this incident and I am currently 26 years old without any major diseases or injuries in all my life.

[JhonAlex35]

I think you should apply some Natural Therapy.It will be better for you.

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

The above is inane. Ignore

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

The ophthalmologist is treating you for a poorly healing corneal abrasion and the MURO 128 is to prevent the 'recurrent corneal erosion" syndrome. We have written about this often here. You likely will need to use the Muro 128 at bedtime (usually ointment) for 6-12 weeks to allow healing.  You should not have a regular eye exam for 2-3 months to allow the cornea to heal.

[JohnValle]

Okay thank you. I hope it doesn't cause any permanent damage Im just a little worried that would happen and I've been doing everything possible not to aggravate the injury further. I would want to have my normal vision back eventually.

[JohnValle]

Dr Hagan, for the blurry vision does the Muro 128 help clear it up over time or is it just the eye itself fixing it over time?

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

The muro 128 has saline in it. It helps decrease the swelling on the cornea that causes recurrent erosions and prevents healing. So it assists natural healing.

[JohnValle]

Hello Dr Hagan, when I woke up today I noticed that my eye had redness and that sensation like something was inside with mild pain for about 30 minutes and it eventually dissipated as I put Refresh eye drops and the Muro 128 saline drop. Is that just a normal thing for my case and not something to be concerned about? This is the first incident I had with it.

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

Overnight sleep is the maximum stress for recurrent cornea abrasions (erosions).  At bedtime you should be using either an ointment (Muro 128 ointment) or a Gel lubricant.   Muro drops will not last all night.  The best Rx would be Muro 128 ointment at bedtime, gingerly opening your eye in the morning, rinse closed eyes with warm water and instill Muro 128 drops (2% or 5%)

[JohnValle]

Does that mean the healing process resets again once an erosion happens?

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

Yes its a setback but not to ground zero. Best case scenario is an abrasion takes 6-8 weeks to be as strong as it normally is.  Recurrent cornea erosion (RCE) can last years especially if not taken care of. Some require cornea surgery or laser resurfacing.

[JohnValle]

Okay thank you so much.

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

Best of luck  RCE common and very troublesome problem in opthalmology