Wet Macular Degeneration - Eye sight problems. NO SYMPATHY PLEASE!

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Sat 8 Apr 2017 17:36
Wet Macular Degeneration - Eye sight problems. NO SYMPATHY PLEASE! - oldroverboy.

A little while back i posted about a friend's poor driving..

www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=110935

Chickens coming home to roost?

I had an eye test at a certain High s opticians and was not pleased with the results (mostly because it seemed hey were more interested in selling me tailored varifocals at buy 1 get 1 free prices, so asked my cousin who is a retired specialist opthamologist for advice.

He directed me to a godd independant optician who then directed me to the excellent eye dept at Colchester Hospital. having been monitored for 2 years it has been suggested that I have injections of Eyelea into my righ eye for starters.

www.macular.org/eylea-injection-treatment

Having been through the trauma of advising a friend not to drive and then finally writing to DVLA to let them know of my concerns, I am determined not to go down the same route. If I am advised to stop driving or am not happy to continue I will do so!

Using the Amsler test my vision is fine, and so far there are no missing bits...and my vision is good for driving too. No problem with number plates at far beyond the required distance.

www.allaboutvision.com/conditions/amsler-grid.htm

Now for the daft question, Has any back roomer any experience of he eyelea injections?

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Sat 8 Apr 2017 18:04
Wet Macular Degeneration - Eye sight problems. NO SYMPATHY PLEASE! - gordonbennet

Not the injections you speak of, but as a boy of around 10 years of age i suffered an eye injury whilst larking about with a friend which put me into Bishops Stortford hospital for around 3 months, during which time i had dozens of injections straight into the eye.

It's not exactly pleasant, but more for the obvious fear factor than pain, because in all honesty its uncomfortable and itchy at the time not painfull, so don't be worried too much by the idea of direct injections.

The saving grace was Nurse Barker, who i'm still in love with some 50 odd years later.

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Sat 8 Apr 2017 18:45
Wet Macular Degeneration - Eye sight problems. NO SYMPATHY PLEASE! - Smileyman

I always remember my late grandfather saying as his years advanced that he no longer liked to drive at night, he found vision was not as good as it used to be. Granted he knew he was on the path towards a cataract operation, but the changes in lighting affected his judgement in some situations and thus confidence to drive.

I also know of people who have had eye treatment who have told me that the experience was not as nasty as the peceived fear in the build up. I'm not saying that it's something to look forwards to, and there are after care requirements to plan for but it's generally quick and there are other treatments which take place whilst awake that are much more unpleasant.

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Sat 8 Apr 2017 20:36
Wet Macular Degeneration - Eye sight problems. NO SYMPATHY PLEASE! - meldrew

Eye surgery is comparatively painless and an injection is nothing to worry about!

The interesting bit is that it will aneasthetise the eye too and when it begins to recover it will not work in harmony with the other eye for a while.

It can be disorientating. When it happened to me I went to the loo, sat down and fell off!!

Please post an update as ageing eyesight is something we all need to be aware of and talk about.

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Sat 8 Apr 2017 21:32
Wet Macular Degeneration - Eye sight problems. NO SYMPATHY PLEASE! - Manatee

Please post an update as ageing eyesight is something we all need to be aware of and talk about.

It's a sod. There's nothing actually wrong with mine at the moment, but the amount of extra light needed compared with much younger people, and age-related presbyopia meaning I have to wear glasses, are a pain. I don't enjoy driving at night either - older eyes are more sensitive to glare and the glasses make it worse, despite every coating going.

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Sat 8 Apr 2017 23:48
Wet Macular Degeneration - Eye sight problems. NO SYMPATHY PLEASE! - RaineMan

My uncle, now 95, was successfully treated by injections for this a few years ago. He did not find it stressful just an odd sensation!

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Sun 9 Apr 2017 03:39
Wet Macular Degeneration - Eye sight problems. NO SYMPATHY PLEASE! - balleballe

I imagine an OCT was performed to establish the presence of wet ARMD? The hallmark sign of wet ARMD is distortion (not necessarily central as the fovea may be intact) and/or metamorphopsia with the amsler. Not come by a single case of wet ARMD with no distortion

The new drug is essentially a cheaper alternative to lucentis, both of which are injected intra-vitreally. The powers to be wouldn't authorise kenalog for ARMD even though it was a proven safe alternative to lucentis and a reduced cost so they had to come up with an alternative as Novartis (makers of lucentis) don't make their drug cheap. Costs about £1700 per injection. This new anti VEGF drug has little track record but theoretically should work as well as lucentis.

10% of those with dry ARMD will develop wet. If caught early the prognosis is positive and may only require a few injections. If you smoke.....stop, and incorporate spinach/kale into the diet for the lutein and xeozanthin to help prevent further changes to the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE)

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Sun 9 Apr 2017 08:20
Wet Macular Degeneration - Eye sight problems. NO SYMPATHY PLEASE! - oldroverboy.

Thanks for comments.. I Don't smoke, never have!

I do tend to need more light for reading but it is the potential driving consequences that concern me. SWMBO (who is a doc herself) will talk to the Consultant beforehand about the various options.

I have a friend who has been having the injections for some years now, and who is not thrilled about them...

Edited by oldroverboy. on 09/04/2017 at 08:32

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Sun 9 Apr 2017 13:26
Wet Macular Degeneration - Eye sight problems. NO SYMPATHY PLEASE! - Auristocrat

Interesting article in the Express today - www.express.co.uk/news/uk/789605/June-Brown-EastEn...s

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Sun 9 Apr 2017 14:43
Wet Macular Degeneration - Eye sight problems. NO SYMPATHY PLEASE! - oldroverboy.

Interesting article in the Express today - www.express.co.uk/news/uk/789605/June-Brown-EastEn...s

Read it yesterday when researching, bu no need for that yet... No indication of cost, but can't see it being "cheap" bu should I come to need it, would pay. Do' think the nhs will pay fr that, and don't expec them to!

Edited by oldroverboy. on 09/04/2017 at 14:44

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Sun 9 Apr 2017 22:00
Wet Macular Degeneration - Eye sight problems. NO SYMPATHY PLEASE! - Smileyman

This kind of treatment ought to be a valid use of NHS monies, the benefit to quality of life is going to be enormous ... as well as reducing the need for other care services, likewise for private health insurance cover to fund this too. For the lucky few self-pay may be an option, like the chap who went to Prague to cure his prostrate cancer using a better treatment path than the NHS offers (as reported in the Express a few weeks ago) ...

Whether the eye treatment will be provided by the NHS is a different matter, beyond the scope of a motoring discussion forum!

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Mon 10 Apr 2017 08:22
Wet Macular Degeneration - Eye sight problems. NO SYMPATHY PLEASE! - oldroverboy.

Whether the eye treatment will be provided by the NHS is a different matter, beyond the scope of a motoring discussion forum!

Drifting off subject yes! My point in posting was to see if it had affected anyone else on the forum and their reactions, after all my eyesight is relevant to me being a safe driver. I do not expect or need the NHS to fund the potential lense implants, and could fund the Lucentis injections myself if necessary. However the alternative drug used by the NHS is very good value and as good in tests, though primarily not designed for blood supply leaks to the eyes. As I wrote earlier, while I am safe to drive, all well and good, But I won,t be selfish if the time comes that I need to hang up my keys.
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Wed 19 Apr 2017 09:48
Wet Macular Degeneration - Eye sight problems. NO SYMPATHY PLEASE! - oldroverboy.

Had first of series of injections yesterday, asked the consultant about driving and was told fine for now. But he would le me know.

Injections were only a tiny bit irritating and very efficiently done. As I was a bit nervous, the lovely nurse held my hand... (A bonus!)

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