Recently diagnosed with glaucoma and having allergic reaction to drops

@carmine100 I agree! I'm the type to research and research and research about stuff like this because I want to know what's happening in my body and why. I had the iridotomy done two weeks ago and my pressure at Friday's appointment was 12 and 13mm; I'm happy I had it done.

Are there any other things I might have happen to my eyes as a result of this down the road? The doctor made it seem like I have the surgery and then put drops in for the rest of my life. Is it really THAT easy?

@kwgriff For some people a simple laser does it. It might not be a permanent cure so you have to do a pressure check often. Ask what the next step is if the pressure rises. Research all the next steps so you can make a good decision if you have to.

I saw my retina specialist in January and everything was stable. I saw her again in June and I had macula edema which explained my recent issues with fine print. I got a shot of Elyea in the eye and that reversed it. The second was last week and the third next month.

You have to watch for anything new and act on it.

@carmine100 Ah, thanks for the information and advice. Prior to July 10, my only eye problem was nearsightedness and astigmatism.

I go back to see the Dr. on Oct 23 and will be researching every chance I can get between now and then. I'll write down my questions and record his answers.

I've also already learned many things through this group.

@kwgriff I think you found your answer. It WAS the preservative. PF= preservative free. I still would expect that to affect the eyes. I am allergic to the preservative in the OTC drops for dry eyes. (I have Sjogrens) It only affects the eyes. Went into punctate keratitis years ago because of that.

Thanks. Yeah, I think I found it. The doctor was so sure it wasn't the preservatives ("because that's is such a hugely rare thing to happen") but everything I found online was pointing to that. After all, 2 different classes of drops were having the same effect on me. I had to beg him to try a PF formula.

Do you know if there's a trick to getting the drops out of the PF bottle? They're so different than a regular eye drop bottle. My dr. showed me to turn the bottle upside down, squeeze it until a small drop came out and hung on the bottle tip, then put it over the eye and squeeze a bit more until it dropped in. I've only used them two nights, so I'm still practicing, but I think I've dropped more on my shirt than in my eye (it's a good thing it's a trial bottle!).

@kwgriff
Hi, my first post here, so I hope I'm doing this right.
Just curious how old you are?
I'm a female in my early 60's that was diagnosed with narrow angle glaucoma and had laser peripheral iridectomy surgery in 2015. My opthamologist also diagnosed dry eye syndrome and told me to use OTC dry eye drops four times a day. I found out recently that menopause can also cause dry eyes.
Since the laser surgery my eye pressures continued to go up and all during this time I was on antidepressants of one sort or another. I tried to figure out what caused this narrow angle glaucoma. My opthamologist said he usually sees it in patients that are far sighted. He said the eye ball changes shape and due to my small eye anatomy, this is what has caused it. I was in my late 40s when I started using reading glasses. My eyes are small as well as dark brown. I asked my eye surgeon about whether he sees narrow angles in Asians and he said, no, and that their eyes appear small, but are not anatomically, just that they have fatty tissue in the eye lids that cause them to appear small. So, okay. I was curious. None of my family members have this nor did my parents or grandparents.
Since my opthamologist never suggested medicated drops for the pressures, I was only to come in every three months to check my optical nerve, which he said is still healthy. I put off seeing my eye doctor as I felt like he was making me worry about it, and never suggested anything for it, so I stopped going.

I then stopped taking antidepressants last year in case they were the cause. Then I went to another eye doctor earlier this year who said my eye pressures were in the upper 20s to low 30s and referred me to the doctor that did the iridectomy. I asked him why my regular eye doctor never suggested medicated drops and he said that the drops work better for open-angle glaucoma, and probably because of side effects. The eye surgeon then checked my pressures which were now in the mid-30s and he checked my optical nerve and said it was healthy, and suggested that I either give drops a try or if the drops do not lower my eye pressures, to do cataract surgery, even though my lenses are just slightly cataract thickened. He has had great results with replacing the thickened lens with a thin acrylic lens. I got the drops, the latanoprost, and started them a month ago and recently was checked and my pressures have significantly reduced. So, I am to continue with the drops as he told me "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" referring to cataract surgery, which he advised has its own risks.
Now, to the drops you are taking. I've read that eye drops can act systemically, and can cause various side effects. Some people say to reduce this to keep your eyes closed for 3 minutes after applying the drops. Some said to close the tear draining ducts using their fingertips for a minute or two, to make sure the drops don't end up all in your sinuses. I've been doing both. But, I've noticed my eyes are burning during the day (I use the drops at bedtime). I've also noticed my eye lids are puffy, and that I'm more sensitive to bright lights or the sunshine. I started to look into preservative-free drops and that's how I found your post. I skipped last nights dosage and my eyes feel back to normal today and even my mood is back to normal, as while on the drops I was feeling down, anxious. I don't know if this was from the drops, but just going a night without the drops has made me feel so much better.

I've added to my regimen, black current seed oil for its a source of gamma linolenic acid (GLA) which is supposed to be helpful for eye health. Have you asked your doctor about Iyuzeh drops that are preservative-free form of latanoprost? I'm awaiting a call back from my eye doctor nurse to see if they will switch me to this.

P.S. I too react the same to diphenhydramine. It makes my husband sleepy, but it gives me restless body syndrome.

I have had glaucoma for some time now. I’ve been using timolol drops in the morning and lumigan drops at night. I also have dry eye and use restasis twice a day.
My eye doctor retired so I had to find a new doctor. The new doctor is an ophthalmologist and a very good one. The first time he saw me he encouraged me to have a simple procedure for my glaucoma. He said it’s a fast, simple, very effective
procedure where he puts a small
hole in my eye. Most patients no longer need to use any drops for the glaucoma. I’d encourage you to
check out this procedure with a well known, successful ophthalmologist. I’ll have my procedure done soon. First one eye, then the other. Best wishes to you.

@humming00birds
I literally turned 60 about 4 1/2 weeks after being diagnosed. I've always had sinus problems and have been on antibiotics, decongestants, and antihistamines since I was a teenager. I had sinus surgery when I was 22 and it greatly helped, but about 15 years ago, I was almost killed by a guy I was dating and, as a result, my septum is now deviated again although I don't have nearly as many problems now as I had before my surgery.

When I did a Google search about narrow angle glaucoma, it specifically said that the largest group of people who have it are Asians! I'm white and apparently it is rare for while people to have it; according to the same search, only 3.8% of white people have it.

I was never told that I have dry eyes, but it seems to be par for the course because I have had dry skin and hair since I was in my early teens. I also have Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, but I don't know if that would cause the dryness or not, as the searches were not conclusive about that. I do think that it makes my eyes sensitive to light, as I hate the "cool" bulbs and fluorescents ones too; they drive me crazy and I end up with a headache.

I also have puffy eyelids which have gotten worse in the last few years.

When I went to the doctor last Friday, he finally gave me Travoprost PF drops and that seems to have done the trick. Travoprost is in the same family as Latanoprost, so perhaps your doctor can prescribe that for you. I hope the nurse will have good news for you!

I've never met anyone else who reacted the same with diphenhydramine. I don't think we're common.

@debjacobs54 Yes, I think that procedure is Iridotomy; I had it the same day I was diagnosed with glaucoma. But my doctor said that I would have to use the drops for the rest of my life.

By the way, the procedure doesn't hurt and is fast. I estimate that it took less than 30 seconds in each eye; the prep took longer than that.

Good luck with the surgery!

@kwgriff thank you for the heads up about the procedure.
I am only having one eye done at a time. Thank you
PS. I’ll let you know if I need to continue with my drops.