Hi

[Debbie]

Hi there.
Well i have RA and possibly AS, also suffer with cervical spondylosis.
Was diagnosed with RA and HLA B27 in 2006, been on methotrexate since 2007.
I had 5 episodes of Iritis in that 1st year, and thankfully only one in the 2nd year.
The 1st time i had Iritis, i had it real bad. I didnt know what was wrong..i was still undergoing tests
to determine the cause of my painful swollen joints etc.
I was treating myself for conjunctivitis at the time
anyway, my eyes have been playing up for the last 3 days.
I dont know if its hay fever, as i have a runny nose too.
They are itchy and red and sore, but also sensitive to light.
It drives me mad that i never get it right. I have been to eye casualty a few times in the past to be told it was dry eyes
or an allergy etc
Anyway nice to meet you all
Deb

[Mike Bartolatz]

Deb,
Welcome to the group!
whenever you have anything going on with your vision, you must have an opthalmologist check you with a slit lamp. doctors at hospitals and Primary care cannot see the inflammation inside your eyes and they wouldn't know how to properly treat it if they could see it.
with HLA B27 related uveitis and ankylosing spondylitis it can be a life long journey whenever inflammation of your spine and joints appears as that inflammation can set off renewed inflammation inside your eyes. Often methotrexate is used to retrain the immune system to stop attacking the eyes. the dose of MTX has to be increased until you are Off all steroids without inflammation. then you stay at the dose for TWO YEARS before you taper off the MTX. sometimes an additonal medication such as Remicade or Humira are used along with the methotrexate to get your eyes quiet when this type of arthritis is seen along with the HLA B27 gene and iritis.
if you are in the UK, there are specialists, OCULAR IMMUNOLOGISTS that can help you prevent vision loss due to the recurrent nature of this type of iritis. sometimes cataracts form and Glaucoma too from the disease or the steroids used to treat it. there are other complications that can occur as well from long standing uveitis such as damage to the retina from Cystoid Macular Edema (oedema in the UK) empiretinal membrane formation and detached retina and vascularization of the retina.
Severe dry eyes can also cause photophobia from inflammaton of the cornea and conjunctiva. sometimes this is due to inflammation of the lacrimal gland the produces the fluid for the tear film. Plugs to seal off the drain from the eye called Punctal plugs can help. preservative free lubricating eyedrops are required repeatedly throughout the day to make sure the tear film prevents abrasion betweent the eyelids and the cornea and conjunctiva. infections can result from a deficient tear film so always get in for an evaluation.

Wish you the very best,
Mike