Temporary Loss of Vision in Right eye

[dextile]

So, its been since September of 08, and Im starting to run out of patience and starting to get a little freaked out. Heres whats been happening. On 3 occasions now, I've lost vision in my right eye. Im not sure how to describe it, because Im not clear on how it starts because I don't always notice it right away, but it seems that the central vision is the first to go and it gradually grows into the peripheral vision, like a grey shade or static on the tv, and it completely envelopes the entire field of vision for my right eye. The first two times it lasted around 2 minutes, maybe a little longer, and the third time, tonight, it lasted about 30 seconds. Theres no pain at the time, but afterwards I do usually feel head pressure and fullness in my ears for a bit, and I feel kind of disassociated after, sometimes the feeling lasts for days. Ive been to a cardiologist, and the carotid doppler and echo were clear (although I still have pulmonary valve stenosis from when I was a child). I've seen both kinds of eye doctors (opthamolgoist and optomitrist.. somthing like that) both say physically my eyes are fine. The optomatrist suggested it was an ocular migrane, the opthamologist suggested blood clots. Im a 23 year old male, up until recently I was actively wrestling competitively so I feel I am in above average shape, no history of blindness or diabetes in my family. I dont know if these are related, but I also have been having a bad time with skin infections from wrestling over the last year or so, constantly getting them, sometimes needed two or three courses of antibiotics before they go away, and I did have a dental infection that started in 2006 and never healed, the tooth was finally removed yesterday and I have been on antiobiotics for the infection since saturday. I think this is basically everything.. if anyone has any ideas, Im more than willing to entertain anything at this point! Thanks
Josh

[dextile]

Thank you for reply. I have had my blood pressure checked, and as of late it has been higher than normal (I can remember two years ago having almost daily contests with some of the other athletes I lived with to see who had the lowest blood pressure and resting heart rate by using the free machines they have in the drug store) I used to be 120, sometimes slightly lower, over 60ish.. resting pulse of mid 40's.. I actually have a picture of the machine to document it. The cardiologist I saw did order a CT of my head, but I haven't gotten the results from that yet, expecting those any day now. At first I was more worried about the episodes of temporary blindness, but now I am more worried about the pressure I feel in my head after, and the fatigue and dizzyness I experience, that sometimes last days after. I've seen our 'team' doctor about it, the sports doctor who takes care of us, since we're at school and usually away from our normal family doctor. He seemed to think it was a vasospasm. I don't know if I mentioned it in my first post either, but there has only been 3 episodes, one at the end of September, one at the end of November, and then today, beginning of January. Anywho, I know nobody can really give me any certain answers without actually physically examining me and knowing my full medical history, but I do appreciate the effort. Thanks again.

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi
Thanks for writing to the forum!
If you do not have blindness literally, but suffer from episodes of blackouts then those could be due to postural hypotension (blood pressure falling with change of position), internal ear problems, cervical spondylitis, anemia, GERD, hypoglycemia or low sugar and some endocrine problems. I think you should discuss this with your doctor. Get your blood pressure checked.

This also looks like an episode of transient ischemic attack wherein the blood supply to brain is temporarily cut off. The episodes last for a maximum of 24 hours and then resolve or a new symptom starts. Otherwise it could be due to ophthalmic nerve compression by a tumor or an aneurysm or a cyst. Please consult a neurologist. You will need to undergo a MRI of the brain.

Loss of central vision is generally due to macular degeneration, but since you have been to an eye specialist, this must have been ruled out.
I am providing you with a link which describes all types of loss of vision problems: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003029.htm

It is difficult to comment beyond this at this stage. Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!

[dextile]

Forgot to add one thing, don't know how relevant it is, but I did live in a basement appartment for over a year, from Sept 07 to Oct 08.. and I only moved when I discovered a massive mold infestation in the wall, from a leaky pipe that had been leaking since before I moved in.. I don't know if that could attribute to anything, especially since its been 3 months since I moved.. but I do know mold is a health hazard. Thanks.