Naion onset after airplane flight

I am so sorry this happened to you! I was diagnosed with NAION 6 months ago, age 53, pretty healthy. I did not get mine from flying, but there is new research out that says if you have the risks factors for NAION (small cup to disc ratio in eye/optic nerve, diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure that goes too low at night from blood pressure medication, or sleep apnea), flying can also be a risk or hiking at very high altitudes. Some people with NAION do fine with flying, but most are advised not to fly within 6 months of a NAION attack. People who continue to fly stay hydrated, get up and walk around as much as possible on flights, don’t sleep on flights, or bring an oxygen concentrator with them. You should probably get tested for sleep apnea and check all other risk factors, especially any having to do with blood flow to the eye (24 hour blood pressure monitoring, check your heart with a cardiologist).
Again, so very sorry you’re going through this! Try to get an appointment with a neuro-ophthalmologist, they are the most knowledgeable about Naion. Also, check out the Naion support group on Facebook. There is a ton of information and lots of support on there.
Also, try to get oral steroids right away if it happens again in the other eye. It can stop the inflammation and possibly preserve some of your vision.

I'm so sorry you've experienced this. It's so awful and scary to feel like you don't have any control over it. My wife who is 55 lost central vision in her left eye and was diagnosed with NAION last year. She has small disk to cup ratio but no other comorbidities. She did the sleep test and doesn't have sleep apnea etc., The neuro opthamalogist put her on steroids for a bit but didn't seem to make any noticeable difference which was sort of the expectation. The doctor did recommend that she fly with an oxygen concentrator to lower the risk of it happening in her right eye which she does now for all flights. She also tries to book on larger airplanes (when reasonably possible) because she read research that they maintain something better than smaller planes (must be pressure or something — I can't quite recall). At first she was skeptical of hauling the oxygenator around because it's a slight pain and even the neuro opthamologist didn't have solid research that proved it would prevent a NAION event but we all agree it's worth the hassle on the off-chance that it doesn't make a difference. It's a small effort to make. The oxygenator itself was expensive but gives her some peace of mind.

Thanks for the information. I did see a neuro-opthamologist. She didn't feel steroids would be helpful. My vision was worse after 5 weeks so I have wondered if they may have helped. My Neuro-ophthalmologist was highly recommended. I have good blood pressure without meds and I've been tested for sleep apnea. I'll ask my primary care doc if I can get checked out by a cardiologist. I will look into the oxygen concentrator and join the fb group you recommended. I'd just like to know how much risk there is with flying with a disk at risk. Thanks again for the reply

@peggy70 We have an alternative to the Facebook group which is reportedly run by an aggressive bloke. It is naion@groups.io People there fly quite often. You are the first person I have heard of where flight might have caused it. Bad luck! Has your NO guy confirmed that you have disc-at-risk?
You may also find some help at this website which was put together by one of our members:
http://www.naionlife.com