1. Community
  2. Eyes
  3. Eye Problems

Sudden vision loss in one eye, need a second opinion

Posted , 6 users are following.

corinne03525
corinne03525

Hi all. About two days ago I noticed I was having trouble seeing out of my right eye. I thought it was just dry or had an irritant in it so I used eye drops and rubbed it a bit. The next morning it had not gone away but I tried to ignore it until today I couldn't take it anymore and saw a corneal specialist.

Some background:

- I had LASIK 1.5 years ago and since then have had 20/15 in both eyes

- I use eye drops regularly since the surgery though I've never suffered uncomfortable dry eyes - it just became habit. I'd say about 2-4 times a day.

- I am 24yo female, very healthy and active, no other health problems/allergies.

- I used to have an astigmatism. After LASIK, it should have been removed but I believe my LASIK surgeon did not fully correct it for various reasons but I do not have a copy of the records to confirm that.

- About 2-3 weeks ago I had an infection (maybe ingrown hair?) about 1.5cm from my right eye. I took 10 days of antibiotics. It was a bad and sudden infection. It has since healed. 

So today during the visit they did a number of tests. My right eye had dropped to 20-46 or something like that. So while not blind, a huge difference from two days ago. The Dr. said that both my eyes had a very slight astigmatism, and both were a bit dry, so his orders were to use eye drops regularly and come back in two weeks if it doesn't heal.

Well.. I told him I really didn't think it was dry eyes since I already use eye drops and why the sudden loss in one eye? The vision loss is significant enough that I cannot perform normally. I cannot read well without strain, getting headache from it, and I feel like I need an eyepatch just to get around. Not only that, but it feels like there is a haze over my right eye, so it makes focusing even harder.

Anyway, I am home now and already scheduled for a second opinion tomorrow at a difference practice. But I believe my eyesight has gotten worse already. I am really scared. Could it be infected like the side of my face was? Something residual from that? Or something worse like a tear that he didn't notice? 

Thank you

 

1 like, 7 replies

7 Replies

  • RobertT
    RobertT corinne03525

    Posted

    What is the haze like? Is it a haze or is it diminished vision? Is it completely over the vision of the eye or just part of it – the central part, for example? Is the image distorted – are straight lines still straight? Is the image size diminished? Are all colours affected equally? Is there any place that there is no vision?
    • icecool
      icecool RobertT

      Posted

      Robert Did the specialist mention the possibility of a cataract at all?
    • RobertT
      RobertT icecool

      Posted

      Don't cataracts tend to develop slowly? Possibly they do tend to obscure the whole image more.

      The only thing that was suggested to me was choroidal neovascularization. I think that though is a precaution in case the retinopathy (of whatever type) that it probably is in my case allows such a problem to develop. Since it's now 6 months that I've been with the condition, I'm getting more worried that I shouldn't give more concern to the idea of having the anti-VEGF shots. Either that or I've done some permanent damage to my eye out in the sun.

    • corinne03525
      corinne03525 RobertT

      Posted

      RobertT, I have replied below about my experience with the follow ups. To answer your questions, there is no nerve swelling, redness, pain, nor did they mention anything about cataracts. 

      The haze is kind of like if you open your eyes under water, and I'm not sure if it just the vision change blurryness or something else.

      I am going to look up choroidal neovascularization - never heard of it before. Thank you!

       

  • iqbal_81981
    iqbal_81981 corinne03525

    Posted

    It is good that you are getting second opinion which should be helpful. I wish you well.
  • icecool
    icecool corinne03525

    Posted

    How did you get on with the second opinion.
    • corinne03525
      corinne03525 icecool

      Posted

      So the update is that the second specialist I went to said something similar to the first but neither actually checked if I had dry eyes (tear test), so I continued using eye drops for a week with no improvment. In my follow up with the second specialist he confirmed it was not due to dry eyes and that my vision loss is likely due to my astigmatism.

      To clarify, I have equal degrees of astigmatism in both eyes. My left eye is 20/20, my right is still not good. They confirmed I am not near sided, but with the refraction test the still could not get me to see 20/20 in my right eye even with the astigmatism correction.

      Basically his advice was to go back to the person who did my Lasik surgery 1.5 yrs ago (across the country from me but luckily they have another center about 2 hrs from me) to see about getting a Lasik touch up.

      I am still not satisfied at all. The vision change was sudden, and they cannot give me a reason why it is poor nor is there a solution to correct it back to 20/20.

      Any advice is much appreciated. I am seeing the 3rd specialist (Lasik people) on Tuesday. 

Back to top

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.