Eye Pressure

Your doctor's intraocular pressure measurements are "very sketchy evidence"

Submitted by dave on Sun, 05/13/2012 - 11:54am

From "Review of Ophthalmology":

most human IOP measurements are “snapshot” measurements—a single reading taken periodically in a doctor’s office. Any conclusions about the nature and impact of fluctuation have therefore been largely based on very sketchy evidence.

That statement, from a 2011 article by the Senior Editor of  "Review of Ophthalmology," captures the motivation that lead to the creation of FitEyes six years ago and that has continued to motivate our engagement with high frequency home eye pressure monitoring (where we recommend multiple measurements per day).

The article can be found here: http://www.revophth.com/content/c/28662/

Filed Under (tags):

Some of my favorite articles on FitEyes.com

Submitted by dave on Tue, 12/07/2010 - 3:03pm

FitEyes favorite articlesI think the following list represents some of the most informative and useful articles on FitEyes.com. There are thousands of articles on FitEyes.com, so many good ones will not be on this list. But this list is a good place to start reading if you are new to FitEyes.com. If you are not new to our site, please make sure you have seen these articles.

Please feel welcome to add comments to this post to mention your own favorite articles on FitEyes.com.

Filed Under (tags):

Mental, emotional and lifestyle factors are the powerful IOP influencers

Submitted by bstruss on Fri, 08/13/2010 - 10:15pm

I am learning so much more about these patterns and their effect on my IOP all the time. Recently, I had a major emotional crises with my family concerning a simple misunderstanding and lack of communication. Interestingly, my eye pressures did not rise in the first couple of days (though the stress was off the charts). However, after a couple of days, my eye pressures went crazy, and even with lumigan, I could hardly get them below 20s.

Filed Under (tags):

Why guess about your eye pressure when you can know?

Submitted by belann on Fri, 08/13/2010 - 3:05pm

I have had my tonometer for almost 6 months.  It has answered a multitude of questions about how my daily routine affects my health.  I didn't know, for example, that just taking a walk outside for a half hour or so would reduce my eye pressure, sometimes by as much as 50%.  I also didn't know that I wasn't one of the people whose pressures are higher at night--in fact my lowest pressures are at night.  (That was good news.  I was tired of sleeping with my head elevated).  

I have found no supplements that had any effect on lowering my IOP, but I have found that some supplements will raise my IOP quite significantly.  I know that out of control thoughts and periods of stress significantly raise my IOP in spite of the two drops I am using or any other healthy lifestyle choices I am making. 

Read more...

 

Filed Under (tags):

I love my new tonometer

Submitted by Maurice Dubois on Mon, 04/26/2010 - 11:38pm

First of all, from the bottom of my heart, I have to thank Dave for leading me to my purchase of my tonometer; what a fantastic instrument!

Several years ago, my ophthalmologist said that I probably had what is called "normal pressure" glaucoma; my pressure was usually 15-16 whenever he checked me, and the highest he ever recorded was 19 on my right eye. He told me to find a glaucoma specialist, so I did.

I went to the specialist for a couple of years, but several things discouraged me from continuing to see him. I found another ophthalmologist; she was somewhat younger and, I thought, perhaps less apt to be running a Speede Oil Change type of service, to see how many people she could get through her clinic in a day. She was a bit better at the latter, but she refused to give me a prescription for a tonometer. I left her and quickly acquired a tonometer prescription; and by the way, the requirement for a prescription for a non-contact tonometer is as silly as the need for me to have a real estate broker's license to sell real estate, or for a city to have building inspectors.

Filed Under (tags):

Are handheld or portable tonometers appropriate for home eye pressure monitoring?

Submitted by dave on Thu, 04/22/2010 - 12:29pm

In any tonometer (based on today's technology), you can have some, but not all of, the following:

  • ease of use
  • accuracy (reliability and validity of data)
  • low cost
  • portability

handheld portable tonometerPeople tend to give a priority to portability and low cost. New products aimed at this feature set have recently been announced. Does it make sense to utilize those devices for self-tonometry?

We have to agree that any trade off that doesn't include reliability and validity of IOP data invalidates the whole endeavor of self-tonometry. Not only is it meaningless to do it if the data is not of sufficient quality upon which to make important decisions, but it could actually be detrimental to do self-tonometry in that case.

With today's technologies, portability entails user-alignment (in the context of self-tonometry). Proper user-alignment to produce a valid measurement, by definition, depends upon user skill as well as various specific conditions of each measurement. User-alignment, regardless of the tonometer, is difficult! (User-alignment is defined as the operator of the tonometer having to align the tonometer with the eye manually. Alignment is a very precise process requiring a steady hand, good eyesight, training and practice.)

Therefore, the requirement of user-alignment conflicts with the requirement of reliability and validity of IOP data. We cannot guarantee reliability and validity of IOP data when variable user skills are required to produce that data.

If any decent ophthalmologist or scientist (or intelligent thinker) considers a set of IOP data, they must consider how the data was obtained. If patient skill played a critical role in producing that data, as it does when user-alignment is required, the clear thinking person will immediately discount that data. Therefore, the self-tonometrist's efforts may not produce much of value.

Filed Under (tags):

Leading Medical Specialists From Around the World Coalesce Around Self-Tonometry

Submitted by dave on Sun, 01/31/2010 - 11:43am

Leading Medical Specialists Support Self-Monitoring of Eye Pressure by Glaucoma Patients;

Self-tonometry has Potential to Transform Glaucoma Treatment, Says Co-Author of Recent Journal Article

self-tonometry eye pressure monitoringGrowing recognition among leading ophthalmologists and glaucoma specialists of an alternative option for measuring pressure in the eye may offer new hope for four million Americans – and millions more people worldwide – who risk permanent blindness, says a co-author of a recent article in the Survey of Ophthalmology.

Filed Under (tags):

Home Eye Pressure Monitoring Recommended

Submitted by FitEyesAdmin on Sat, 09/12/2009 - 3:38pm

Millions of people around the world should be monitoring their eye pressure (intraocular pressure) at home, according to health organizations (such as  International Society for Self-Tonometry (ISST)) that are issuing recommendations on what to do and how to do it. Many experts, such as Dr.

Filed Under (tags):

About FitEyes.com

FitEyes.com is currently the largest eye pressure research and glaucoma support community in the world. We boast our very devoted followers and the richness of information regarding general well-being, healthy lifestyle, and, in particular, eye health on our website. This information includes, but is not limited to, articles, editorial content, blogs, published research, and members’ reviews, postings and discussions.

Pages

Subscribe to FitEyes.com RSS Feed Subscribe to Eye Pressure