Blepharospasm Bulletin Board

Side effects to botox
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Posted by: shirl ®
10/31/2009, 21:45:52
It's now been a week since my first botox treatment. Left eye. The lid continues to only shut about 1/4 way when I blink and my eyes are so dry, gritty and itchy that I can hardly stand it. Do others have this effect to botox and if so, how long does it last? because of the dryness there was divit damage to the cornea (it will heal) so I am now wearing a "bandaid contact". I put moisturing drops in my eye about every 5 minutes but nothing seems to help. Besides all that, it look bizare when I blink and my left eye only closes 1/4 at most and my eye ball rolls up. Is this just me or do others have this also? I would appreciate any insight out there. Thank you



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Re: Side effects to botox
Re: Side effects to botox -- shirl Top of thread Archive
Posted by: june in toronto ®
11/01/2009, 09:51:45
I've been getting botox injections for over 15 years now - my last set was just over 2 weeks ago and I am still getting side effects. This is 'normal' for me as I sometimes go 4 weeks with side effects, but then I can go 4-6 months between injections (win some, lose some!). I know that 'gritty and itchy" feeling so well - in fact my eyes right now feel like they have been sunburned. I, too, am putting in drops constantly but only the genteal gel soothes them (and a cool cloth over the eyelids) but then I have blurred vision (on top of the side effect of blurred vision) so I guess it doesn't really matter LOL.

I (need to) remember when I was first diagnosed I would sit in a dark room for days on end after the injections but believe now I have done too much. I had tickets for Cirque du Soleil and, altho' had asked if there were any strobe lights, I forgot to check about the dark stage and spot lights. If I hadn't gone with a group of people I would have left at intermission although it was a fantastic show, from what I could see around the program covering my eyes, and a visor on my head!

The eyes staying open a bit after botox is normal - make sure you put in an eye cream at night and cover the eyes with a mask. That "bandaid contact" you have is a warning for sure that you continue.....to do everything you can to keep the eyes moist.

I take omega 3 and flax oils, have humidifiers going in the home and a warm-air mist one in the bedroom during the winter months - it all helps to keep the eyes moisturised.

Good luck with the botox - side effects pass eventually and I hope you have better eye days to come. June in Toronto




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Re: Side effects to botox
Re: Side effects to botox -- shirl Top of thread Archive
Posted by: myfanwy ®
11/01/2009, 10:24:18
HI. I too used to suffer awful side effects and often had to have contact bandages. It got worse after surgery as my eyelid wouldn't close even at the end of the botox cycle.
Do you tape your eyes shut at night or wear the tranquilise goggles, you may find they help a bit. I used to use lacrilube even during the daytime, though this wouldn't be practical if you needed to see clearly as it makes everything a blur.
My problems used to last for about six weeks, I'd have a couple of decent weeks, then the spasms would come back with a vengeance.
After a lot of discussion with my consultant we decided to go for less botox sites, I went from twenty to sixteen and stopped having the four in the upper corners of my eye-lids. Things are now much better, My constant blinking is slightly worse but this is nowhere near as painful as the chronic dry eyes I used to have. I still use drops and goggles but things are much more bearable.



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Re: Side effects to botox
Re: Side effects to botox -- shirl Top of thread Archive
Posted by: JetHart ®
11/01/2009, 16:44:52
Ouch! I started having episodes with dry eye after eyelid surgery--felt like rocks under my eyelids at night. It was very painful, and the irritation persisted all day after that.

Eye drops do a good job for me during the day, and I've found a heavy duty eye drop works well at night--that or an ointment preparation made with mineral oil. I've used both Optive and Refresh p.m. with good results at night.

See if the doctor doing your treatment has some samples of moisturizing products so that you can try them out without investing a bunch of money.

Good luck with the botox injections. Be sure to keep a log and tell the doctor about the dry eye problem and the fact that the eyelid doesn't close very far. Those are important pieces of feedback.

JetHart



Modified by JetHart at Sun, Nov 01, 2009, 17:21:56

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Re: Side effects to botox
Re: Re: Side effects to botox -- JetHart Top of thread Archive
Posted by: judith k ®
11/01/2009, 17:11:16
Hi,

Dry eye can become a problem even if you've never had that condition before, and even if it doesn't occur as a result of surgery or something like that.
That's because even when the Botox works well, and even when it looks and feels as if you can close your eyes at will, after Botox you can't get them quite as tightly shut as before. That's because the Botox weakens the muscles; that's what it's supposed to do. (But it's not supposed to interfere with the eyelids closing to the degree you describe!)
Among other things, after Botox, the tear-film can get affected because of the eyes being open all day and still open a little bit at night. And at night, you can't keep putting in drops the way you do in the daytime.
Not only should you use a good heavy-duty moisturizer at night (I use GenTeal Gel, but there are a number of different products that people like), but I use a mask as well. I get those thin cloth masks like the ones airlines have, but whatever kind you try, the purpose is that not only do you have your eyes sealed with gel or ointment at night, but you keep the gel or ointment in place; it doesn't rub off so readily.

Judith K




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