hi, i have a question about optic neuritis. about a year and a half ago i had an episode were all of a sudden everything looked bright and got blurry, then i lost all peripheral vision in my left eye. after about 20 minutes my vision got better, but i got a terrible headache (i had to take a pain killer, tylenol didn't work!). i was told by the opthalmologist it was an ocular migraine, this hasn't ever happened again. now here i am a year and a half later going through testing for ms. do you think that could have really been an episode of ON? if it was ON would my vision return that quickly and do you get a headache afterwards? i've since had pain w/eye movement, blurry vision, and headaches. this i was told is from dry eyes. what do you think?
It could be, there is a test called the VISION FIELD TEST that can tell if you have ON. You should ask for it. It only takes about 20 minutes all together, I have my apt. on Feb. 25 to test for it.
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Originally Posted by jen0777
hi, i have a question about optic neuritis. about a year and a half ago i had an episode were all of a sudden everything looked bright and got blurry, then i lost all peripheral vision in my left eye. after about 20 minutes my vision got better, but i got a terrible headache (i had to take a pain killer, tylenol didn't work!). i was told by the opthalmologist it was an ocular migraine, this hasn't ever happened again. now here i am a year and a half later going through testing for ms. do you think that could have really been an episode of ON? if it was ON would my vision return that quickly and do you get a headache afterwards? i've since had pain w/eye movement, blurry vision, and headaches. this i was told is from dry eyes. what do you think?
What you post sounds similar to what I've encountered but different. At 18, had my first headache, early 20's migraines. Out of the blue in 1999, I had severe shooting pain behind the right eyeball & pain with movement of the globe directionally. Different muscles started to twitch (a first then, but continue today). My eye doc said it could be on. My TSH around that time was suppressed with normal T’s (told it was intermittent hyper/mild graves). r of orbits was normal. The right eye is weaker then the left. Mr of the brain showed a lesion (between the brain and spine). That was months after the right sided facial weakness & followed severe ear pain with fever. That was the first of what I call episodes.
I have a history of migraines but never had that specific eye pain before. Since then, it happened in the left eye and months later, had left sided facial weakness. I was dx w/a dry eye condition a couple years after the first bout of facial weakness. When I am tired and or have very dry eye I experience double vision with a hazy image. Bright light can irritate at times so I adjust the lighting. This December past, my eye crossed momentarily (while different muscle groups have been giving me trouble off and on throughout this last year). Eye doc said it was esotropia but did not know why it happened. PCP wants me to see the rheumy. & neuro. Thyroid levels have been up, t3 one visit, t4 another & need to be re-evaluated by an endocrinologist (was years ago, told hyper and took Tapazole for a year).
I suppose it is possible to have brief episodes depending on how active the inflammation is. When it shows up on mr, I think it's indicative of the repeat assaults to tissue in damage that has been done (how bad the flare is, i.e.: weakness in the body, a signal and example of that type of damage and extent). Like RR ms. From what I've read, on can be an early sign of possible ms or not. There are percentages but I don’t recall what they are. MS causes strange sensations and is sometimes hard to find & can take years to dx.
In earlier years I was very frightened because things started happening. Time has a way of shedding light on previous experiences coupled with new ones. Symptoms and onset compiled can help to fit the pieces of the puzzle together. What you describe sounds like the aura that can accompany a migraine. What precipitated it is a question. If eye dryness is suspect, keep them moisturized.
Back then, if someone told me some of the sensations were due to dryness I'd think them crazy but not anymore. Wishing you well, Gemi
If the visual loss only lasted a little while, I would moreso lead to an ocular migrane instead of MS. Has anyone looked into your eyes? And I mean when you had those symptoms. If you did indeed have Optic Neuritis at that time, it could have been a flare up with only a little bit of vision loss (but the optic nerve could have still been inflamed after the loss). I suppose that it could have been ON in its initial flare ups?
A visual fields test works well when you do indeed have vision loss. If your vision is back to normal than the fields won't show what is going on. It shows areas in the optic field that are affected by the vision loss from Optic Neuritis, retinitis, glaucoma, cataracts etc. The best way to know if your optic nerves are inflamed is to see an Opthalmologist and have then put drops in your eyes to enlarge your pupils so that they can have a good look at all of the nerves in your eyes. I have had ongoing Optic Neuritis in both eyes for a year now, and my vision is double and blurred from it.
I was diagnosed with ON in the spring of 1993. I don't recall having any real pain, but my vision was blurred. The best way I can describe it is that it looked like I was looking under water in a pool with my eye open. It was only my left eye and they did the vision field tests and confirmed ON. I treated with oral steroids and it was better within a few weeks. I regained my vision fully (still a little less than my right eye), but not very noticeable. I really don't remember how long it took, but my vision didn't take very long to at least get to "near normal". I had a lot of color distortion as well. I recall driving and stopping at a "red light", but I needed to rely more on which light was lit (top, center, or bottom) as the colors really didn't look like "red, green or yellow), just bright. It was very strange. Good luck!
Just wanted to point out that you are replying to a post which is over 7 years old....you probably wont get any response, since the poster doesnt appear to be with us any longer.
You should post an introduction to us all, since it appears you have just joined us, but nevertheless, welcome to the boards, we hope to hear more from you!!
Nikki
