Cataract Question!

[DipsyDoodle]

Hi all I'm a newbie and was recently diagnosed with small cataracts in both of my eyes. My history is I have an autoimmune condition that first struck my left lung and when I had a flare up it attacked my right eye. So I have had to be on eye drops on and off. I was first on Pred Forte drops for 3 or 4 years and then when I started seeing a new ophthalmologist she put me on Durezol which was last year. Well a couple of weeks ago we thought my eye was quiet but then that weekend it flared up so I would gradually put the Durezol drops in until I could see my eye doc. Well when I finally was able to get in to see her she said I had small Cataracts in both of my eyes and I immediately sunk in my seat. I didn't really know what they were but I had heard of them before. So she explained the whole process of what causes them and how they can be treated. She said they would replace my lenses with fake ones and that young people like me(I'm 27) have these put in all the time and live full lives. But then she said my vision is too good for surgery and that we would have to wait until it got bad. Well I've been upset over the situation because I don't want surgery, fake lenses, or to go blind. So I was wondering is there any other treatment that could be done for the cataracts with the surgery and lens replacement? Are there any drops for cataracts? Currently I am on Durezol and Nevanac to quiet my eye. I was reading about something called Can-C eye drops that are supposed to help but have not been approved.

[Mike Bartolatz]

I STRONGYLY urge you to consider a consultation with a real expert in treatment of Ocular Inflammatory disease processes. I assume you have something autoimmune or autoinflammatory in nature as an underlying diagnosis. Steroids will cause cataracts and they can cause glaucoma to occur. the topical eye-drop durezol is to be used for SHORT periods of time, 2 weeks is what is recommended because they can quickly cause glaucoma and cataracts to occur. if you have uveitis, iritis, choroiditis, scleritis etc then you need to DOWNREGUALTE your immune system to RETRAIN it to stop attacking our eyes. Ocular Immunologists are ophthalmologists who have done additional formal training in the diagnosis and treatment of eye disease and then treating it with the drugs that Rheumatologists and other specialists called DMARD or disease modifying anti rheumatic drugs.
do you have sarcoidosis, systemic sclerosis, tuberculosis, crohn's disease or another things that has lungs involved? all of these things are directly linked to in the conditions I named above.

cataract surgery in someone with uveitis requires that the uveitis be quiet for about 3 months before surgery is done. usually one waits until vision goes to 2/80 or worse before surgery. one pretreats with Durezol and continuous Durezol after surgery for two weeks. hopefully this will keep the trauma from surgery from renewing inflammation.

there is a list of the specialists at http://www.uveitis.org in the PATIENT information section of the site. or, tell me where you live and I will suggest the best specialist near you for a consultation.
uveitis is the third leading cause of blindness BTW, a steroid only approach to treatment is NOT what the American Academy of Opthalmology indicates should be used. General ophthalmologists are not trained to treat with anything but corticosteroids. only the additional training of an Ocular Immunologist can break the corticosteroid rollercoaster that you are presently on. preventing glaucoma from occuring in the first place is a major concern. macular edema results from long term inflammation as do other changes inside the eyes that can cause detachment of the retina. today preventing damage from inflammation is the goal rather than wait until the cataract develops and we will operate or glaucoma and we will do surgery etc.
the nsaid eyedrop nevenac doesn't treat uveitis, it will treat episcleritis. Methotrexate, cellcept or Imuran are the first DMARD drugs used, then other classes are added such as a TNF A blocking drug like Remicade or humira./
if you have cystoid macular Edema present, that is treated with Bromfenac and AVASTIN injections, not just steroids anymore.
only anterior uveitis/iritis responds to steroid eyedrops. other forms of uveitis, intermediate and posteroir are treated with corticosteroid injecitons to tissue SURROUNDING Tthe eye, not into it or Oral steroids. then the DMARD drugs are added until the eye is quiet and then steroids are slowly tapered off.

I know of no otc things you can take. No herbal products or diets etc.
for some NSAIDS can bread the cycle however but they must be prescribed and monitored by a physician.

wishing you the best,
Mike