inflammation and pain

[jillsreply]

My eyes will frequently get red in the inside of the lids.  There is no discharge, just sleep in the eyes occasionally.  They are somewhat dry, have always been dry actually.  No itching.  This is re-occurring.  I had noticed maybe a year ago that it would happen, then get a little better, then get a little worse.  Then, it didn't happen again for quite a while(4 or 5 months?) and now recently, it hit again with inside of eyelids very red, and I started to have some pain too.  So I became concerned.  The pain is intermittent, but if it started to be continuous it would quickly become an issue!

It feels a little like eye strain- like a pulled muscle type of feeling, uncomfortable and sore on the eye intermittently, and there is some soreness inside the lids and dryness.  Noticeable strain looking up and down, left right... it pulls and feels sore.

  I went to clinic but I don't have insurance, and the nurse practitioner just used the little light thing that a doc uses to peer into my eyes.  She asked if I had vision loss or blurring, and I told her no.  She thought it could be allergies, said to take drops.. but I don't know for sure which ones.  

I am trying decongestant and antihistamine at bedtime in cased sinus is secretly the problem.  I am worried ...and the eyes don't itch or water like they have in the past with allergies that I would take drops for.  If it is something more serious, could the little light that the doc uses detect it, or do I need to see an Ophthalmologist, do they have more specialized equipment or can they detect with that hand held light?  

My concern would be that what if I have a low-grade uveitis, and it won't be detected because it's low grade...I really don't want to jeopardize my sight!   Or what if it is some kind of infection? It could be blepharitis I guess, but there is NO discharge or gunky stuff.  No lid swelling or sticking together that show in pictures of blepharitis.

If that little light the doc uses can detect something like uveitis or inflammation, then I won't worry about it, as I don't have a lot of money- I'm in between jobs. I just need reassurance that seeing the doctor was enough, or advice if I ought to see Ophthalmologist.  I also went to an optometrist 3 months ago so my glasses are current...and I just really hate to spend more money being paranoid unless there are things the regular doctor (nurse practitioner) could be missing that I should be worried about with these annoying and frequently re-occurring symptoms.  My health has not been super good, I've had issues with very uncomfortable female cycle (taking yasmin to end it) and I've had acid reflux that is worse with cycle(taking zantac) and a lot of fatigue, probably due to those two things.

thanks!

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

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[kjelltp]

Your symptoms raises a pretty big red flag that it could be systemic (the acid reflux, fatigue, etc..).    Check your eyes, and also investigate holistic care.

[jillsreply]

Thank you.

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

A nurse with a little light barely rises to the level to be deemed medical care. Welcome to healthcare reform in the USA.

You need to see an ophtalmologist. Most are willing to set up a payment schedule to retire your account.

Use the search feature and archives to read about "dry eyes" and "blepharitis" they often occur together. Red eyelides is usally due to one or both.

JCH MD