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Eyesight

Hi, im just wondering if anyone has had any problems with their eyesight that has been linked to crohns or uc? Over the last few months i have been having a mild flare and i have also noticed that my eye sight has gone downhill. Whether they are just giving up on me or if its part of the flare is a mystery but just wondering if anyway else has had any similar experiences?.
 
I had unexplained lesions on my eyes at my last sight test (jan/feb time). My optician referred me to an opthalmogist to get them checked out, but couldn't get an appointment till the end of April. In the meantime I go into hospital and get put on Pred for suspected Crohn's. When I went to my opthalmogist appointment, there weren't any lesions. She reckoned the optician made a mistake, but I think it's more likely that it was Crohn's related.
 
I always know when I'm about to flare as my mouth dries up and ulcers appear, and also my eyes get sore and itchy - days before any blood loss or severe d. My Gastro has said that there's a link between the eye infammation and that in my Colon, and to have regular eye tests.
Hope it gets better soon,
Andrea
 

Jennifer

Adminstrator
Staff member
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SLO
Eye inflammation is related to high doses and long term use of Prednisone and everyone should get their eyes checked on a regular basis if they are taking that medicine.

"8. Eye changes
High dose or long-term use of prednisone can cause two types of eye problems - cataracts and glaucoma. Cataracts are deposits in the lens of the eye and are part of the normal aging process. They are more common after long term prednisone usage and there is nothing you can do to prevent them. Fortunately, the cataracts caused by prednisone are usually small and usually not the type that interfere with normal vision. Prednisone can also increase the pressure of the fluid inside the eyeball, a painless condition known as glaucoma. If eyeball pressure rises high enough, vision may be permanently damaged. Blindness can result. However, once diagnosed, glaucoma can be treated with prescription eyedrops. Patients on prednisone should see their eye doctor at least once a year for a complete eye examination."
http://www.gihealth.com/html/education/drugs/prednisone.html

IBD is also linked to eye inflammation as Welsh-bird pointed out. So if your vision has changed, please get your eyes checked on a regular basis as well.

"In addition, organs other than the intestinal tract can be involved by the underlying inflammation of IBD. These organs include the eyes (symptoms of red eye or blurred vision), the mouth (symptoms of sores in the mouth), joints (symptoms of joint pain with or without joint swelling and redness), and skin (symptoms of rashes or skin ulcers most commonly involving the lower legs)."http://www.acg.gi.org/patients/gihealth/ibd.asp
 
I have all sorts of eye inflammation (uvitis, iritis, and scleratis) associated with crohn's. I have not had any permeant vision changes. You might want to try going to an eye doc when you have a flare and ask to try an experiment and have them check out the back of your eyes with a slit lamp.

Good luck!
 
I have had Iritis endlessly with my crohn's disease. And with that comes different eye drops and such. But because it does cause inflammation within your eye which can lead to scarring vision changes are not unusual. I have had some very noticeable vision changes with my iritis. I also get some intense eye pain when I get iritis so I know when I have it :). It's always a good idea to get your eyes checked, you can never be too careful!
 
since my present flare up, my eyeslids are constantly swollen and my vision is blurry. Been checked by dr and he said it was eczema on my eyelides. I'm putting on hydrocortizone but not avail.
 
eyes

hi
I just got out of hospital with a nasty flare and it had a huge impact on my eyes... They were full of blood and I looked like a zombie. The hospital were brill and put me through their opthamology dept and gave me steroid eyedrops and i have to have them checked again next week. Hopefully there has been no permanant damage.
It is worth getting them checked as they can check the blood vessels and stuff.
XXXX
 
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