Posted 5/20/2005 1:52 PM (GMT -7)
Hi there,
This is my first post here, I'm from the UK and found this message board while trying to find possible causes for some discomfort I am experiencing around my eyes.
A brief background on myself - I've only got useful sight in one eye thanks to having myopia (lazy eye syndrome in one eye). I've been getting pains in and around my eyes (mainly my right (good) eye) and a pressure sensation (nearly always my right eye) which has been causing me a great deal of concern. I've been experiencing it for around 6 months.
When it first started happening I went to the opticians for an examination and they could find nothing wrong so I took there word for it.
5-6 months later, after experiencing anxiety regarding some other aspects of my life, the anxiety has started to focus on my eyes and the ocular discomfort that seems to be mainly confined to my right eye. I've become very worried that I may have a Carcinoma of the Lacrimal gland after looking my symptomns up on an eye cancer website.
I got my GP to refer me to an opthalmologist (eye doctor) and had my appointment last night. He did various tests on my eyes after I described the problems I was having - these included looking at them with a microscope, looking into them, and putting a flurescent die on them to see that my tears were secreting correctly. He said that my eye appeared to be very healthy and that there was nothing to worry about. I asked him whether a CT scan would be neccessarry and he said no.
His explanation for the discomfort I am experiencing is that a lot of VDU workers get pain/discomfort and due to the fact I mainly rely on only one eye, it is under even more strain.
On hind sight I am wonderin whether I should have pushed for one. He says that if the lachrimal gland is diseased it is normally visible and tear production is affected (either producing too much or too little tears). He also said that orbital tumours were very rare and I have more chance of getting prostrate cancer.
Are opthalmologists usually fairly good at diagnosing such problems. I am still worried and very anxious about losing my eye sight and really wish I'd pushed for a CT scan. I'd rather get diagnosed now where the potential for successful treatment exists than wait till more dramatic symptomns appear.
Cheers
Jon