Celiac And Lasik Surgery

[jennavive00]

I have been having tons of problems with my eyes since about the time I started having major celiac symptoms (diagnosed in August), and haven't been able to wear contacts for months. I went in for a LASIK consultation, and my doctor told me that Celiac Disease is on the list of unapproved conditions for having the procedure. Apparently it is an auto-immune disease, and they are afraid of problems with the healing process. He told me he thought it would most likely be fine, but until it was removed from the list, they would not be able to perform the procedure. I'm going crazy in my glasses...Has anyone ever heard of this before or have any evidence to suggest otherwise? Has anyone had LASIK and been fine?

Thanks,

Jenna

[HouseKat]

I have been having tons of problems with my eyes since about the time I started having major celiac symptoms (diagnosed in August), and haven't been able to wear contacts for months. I went in for a LASIK consultation, and my doctor told me that Celiac Disease is on the list of unapproved conditions for having the procedure. Apparently it is an auto-immune disease, and they are afraid of problems with the healing process. He told me he thought it would most likely be fine, but until it was removed from the list, they would not be able to perform the procedure. I'm going crazy in my glasses...Has anyone ever heard of this before or have any evidence to suggest otherwise? Has anyone had LASIK and been fine?

Thanks,

Jenna

I had LASIK in June 2006, before I knew that I had Celiac, and I had no problems or complications at all.

Kate

[Silly Yak Pete]

I had lasix surgery in Sept 2006 with great results!

[ravenwoodglass]

I have been having tons of problems with my eyes since about the time I started having major celiac symptoms (diagnosed in August), and haven't been able to wear contacts for months. I went in for a LASIK consultation, and my doctor told me that Celiac Disease is on the list of unapproved conditions for having the procedure. Apparently it is an auto-immune disease, and they are afraid of problems with the healing process. He told me he thought it would most likely be fine, but until it was removed from the list, they would not be able to perform the procedure. I'm going crazy in my glasses...Has anyone ever heard of this before or have any evidence to suggest otherwise? Has anyone had LASIK and been fine?

Thanks,

Jenna

You may want to consider giving things a bit before doing the surgery. You may find that your eyes calm down after you have been gluten-free for a while longer. Some of us will experience vision problems when glutened or CC'd due to the brain fog. Another thing we can have problems with is dry eyes, this can make wearing contacts tough but the doctor may be able to provide a solution or even a different type of contact to take care of the problems. Another thing you need to do, if you haven't already, is get your blood sugar checked. Gluten issues can cause issues with blood sugar and that can also effect the vision. Many gluten-free foods are higher in carbs than their gluten counterparts and some of us in the first few months deal with gluten cravings with treats, that can lead to prediabetic or diabetic levels until we learn to adjust a bit better. One of the first indications that I get that my sugar is high is blurred vision and I think that may be fairly common.

[Fiddle-Faddle]

I do notice that my contact lenses are much more comfortable than they were before going off gluten.

I had a lot of trouble finding soft contact lenses that worked. The first opthalmologist I saw tried ONE pair on me, and told me that I simply couldn't wear soft lenses.

A couple of years later, a colleague raved about an optometrist, not an opthalmologist (and from Sears, no less!!!), and strongly recommended that I see him, which I did (despite doubts). I'm so glad I did--the optometrist was SO much better at fitting the lenses than the fancy-schmancy opthalmologist!

He tried 5 different brands before one was both comfortable and provided clear vision.

Honestly, I felt like going back to the opthalmologist and asking for my money back.

There is also an autoimmune dry eye syndrome called Sjogren's, which is likely linked with celiac, and people with it usually see a lot of improvement after going off gluten.

As far as Lasik goes, last I heard (from an eye surgeon), if you have had Lasik and develop cataracts when you are older, they are unable to do cataract surgery. Hopefully, they will come up with a way around that in the next decade or two (if they haven't already).

[Gemini]

I have been having tons of problems with my eyes since about the time I started having major celiac symptoms (diagnosed in August), and haven't been able to wear contacts for months. I went in for a LASIK consultation, and my doctor told me that Celiac Disease is on the list of unapproved conditions for having the procedure. Apparently it is an auto-immune disease, and they are afraid of problems with the healing process. He told me he thought it would most likely be fine, but until it was removed from the list, they would not be able to perform the procedure. I'm going crazy in my glasses...Has anyone ever heard of this before or have any evidence to suggest otherwise? Has anyone had LASIK and been fine?

Thanks,

Jenna

You should have the blood test for Sjogren's Syndrome, which is very common with Celiac Disease. It will cause dry eye and dry mouth because your autoimmune system attacks the salivery and lacrimal glands. A person can have some improvement after going gluten free but it never goes away and you will have ongoing problems from it.

A good eye physician would never do any laser surgery on a person with Sjogren's because it can cause major problems as you age. It will dry the eyes out even more and can cause abrasions on the cornea. Contact lenses are also not a good idea, for the same reasons. I have Sjogren's myself so know what I am talking about. There is a Rx eyedrop called Restasis and it works wonders with relieving dry eye so this might be an option for you. Take care of your eyes because if compromised, you may have serious problems as you age and you never want to mess with your eyesight. I wear my glasses and do not mess around with contacts or anything else for fear of damaging the cornea. Good luck to you and I hope you find relief!

[jennavive00]

Yeah I guess I should give it a little more time before I rush into surgery. I've tried just about every brand and type of contacts, seen just about every optometrist and opthamologist at my hospital...I suggested that Sjorgen's condition to the opthamologist, but he brushed it off pretty quickly because I don't have dry mouth. I think I'll go ahead and have the blood test done anyway, I should have learned my lesson about doctors after I diagnosed myself with Celiac Disease after they tried to blame "IBS".

Thanks everyone for your suggestions, it's good to know I'm not the only one having these problems

~Jenna

[Gemini]

Yeah I guess I should give it a little more time before I rush into surgery. I've tried just about every brand and type of contacts, seen just about every optometrist and opthamologist at my hospital...I suggested that Sjorgen's condition to the opthamologist, but he brushed it off pretty quickly because I don't have dry mouth. I think I'll go ahead and have the blood test done anyway, I should have learned my lesson about doctors after I diagnosed myself with Celiac Disease after they tried to blame "IBS".

Thanks everyone for your suggestions, it's good to know I'm not the only one having these problems

~Jenna

Go with your gut instinct, which it sounds like you will. I, too, share a basic distrust of doctors due to prolonged diagnosis time, which resulted in additional related problems. If I ever get one more eye roll from a physician, I'll explode! I think the reason they get so annoyed is that I figured out my problems before they did and requested testing, which came back positive.

I don't think you have to necessarily have dry mouth to have Sjogren's, either.

If your eyes are unusually dry and bothersome, it can be Sjogren's and it's good to know you have it. A rheumatologist is the person to go for diagnosis.....it's a connective tissue disease. Good luck to you!