ON testing

[pennst8r]

Had the most thorough vision testing imaginable today. Was there for nearly 3 hours, and not in the waiting room! The doc said he does not think I have ON, though I have to come back next week for further testing. He did say you can never 100% rule out ON, which I did not know.

He did find macular degeneration in my right eye, however. I have to start treatment for that, do a home monitoring thing regularly to check for progression, and go back every 6 months after I'm done with the other testing. My regular eye doc's ON "rule out" was nothing different from the regular check up. This was quite high tech. So if he says no ON after this last test (a visual field test), then I believe him, lol!

I'm glad I decided to go this extra step. I would never have suspected any issues. I've been telling my eye doc for years about "floaters", etc and was told it's nothing to worry about. I go for regular check ups and all too. guess that one's my "old" eye doc!

Penn

[gooddays]

IF GOING THE EXTRA MILE IS WHAT IT TAKES TO SAVE YOUR SIGHT, THEN SAY NO MORE AND GO FOR IT.

ON IS NOT VERY EASY TO DEAL WITH.  IN MY CASE, I HAVE BEEN DEALING WITH MS FOR THE LAST 12 YEARS, BUT AS FAR AS I CAN REMEMBER NOW, I HAD SINCE MY TEEN AGE YEARS.  MY EARLIEST RECOLECTION OF HAVING MS SYMPTOMS, NOW THAT I KNOW WHAT IT IS, WAS LOOSING MY SIGHT ON MY LEFT EYE, IT IS STILL HAPPENING.

IN SOME PREVIOUS POSTS I HAVE MENTIONED THAT BECAUSE I HAVE HAD SO MANY BOUTS OF ON, I HAVE TO WEAR AN EYE PATCH ON MY LEFT EYE FOR AT LEAST 18 HOURS A DAY FOR THE NEXT 6 MONTHS TO A YEAR. I HAVE AN APPOINTMENT WITH MY NEURO-OPTHALMOLOGIST EVERY THREE MONTHS.  YOU ARE NEVER TO FAR AWAY FROM GOING THE EXTRA MILE.  

REST YOUR EYES AS MUCH AS YOU ARE ABLE TO AND DO NOT OVER DO IT.

TAKE GOOD CARE OF YOURSELF,

GOODDAYS

[young at heart]

I'M GLAD THAT YOU WENT THAT EXTRA ROUTE WITH YOUR EYES,THEY ARE NOTHING TO MESS WITH.

MY VISION STARTED TO GET PROGRESSIVELY WORSE WHEN I TURNED 40,MY REGULAR EYE DR STATED IT WAS AGE,WELL 2 YEARS LATER AFTER AN OPTHAMOLOGIST AND A NEURO-OPTHAMOLOGIST AND A VEP , BOTH EYES HAVE BEEN EFFECTED WITH ON.

ITS ALWAYS GOOD TO GO THAT EXTRA MILE

T

[essdipity]

Hey there. I don't recall whether or not you had the VEP test, or how you fared. I showed an abnormality in my right eye, at which point I was sent to an ophth., who found no evidence of ON but said I had the very beginnings of macular degen. Thus my neuro at the time dismissed the whole thing.

Recently I went through the whole Hopkins route, and that neuro was suspicious of this finding, saying that it would be quite a coincidence for two degenerative processes to be operating at once. He sent me to a Hopkins ophth., not a neuro-ophth., however, who conceded he knew little about the neuro aspects. He too did not find ON (I've had no eye complaints), but said that if there was any macular degen. it was only in the most technical sense, and nothing to cause abnormality in testing. Apparently something called drusen are characteristic of M.D., and they need to be of a certain type and size. I didn't have that type, and it was only a tiny amount anyway.

So the Hopkins neuro concluded that the abnormal VEP was caused by a silent lesion on the optic nerve, thus bolstering his diagnosis.

This of course is all very complicated and I know zilch about the medical aspects of it all. What I did learn is that there is considerable disagreement in the neuro and neuro-ophth. world about this whole subject, with some neuro-ophths. feeling strongly that the VEP is worthless as a test. So it's clear as mud.

ess