Glaucoma Disease

Marijuana

Question:

Hi Tom How can you seriously contemplate using an illicit drug, which has never had any research attached to it, and is acknowledged as being harmful to your general system, to address a local (eye) problem when you cannot measure the effectiveness of the treatment, since no qualified practitioner would ever agree to monitor your progress, as they would be implicated in an illegal act and could jeopardise their Practicing License.  Please understand that all drugs can have side-effects, which vary from person to person, but your probability of successful, long term treatment on correct Doctor-prescribed drugs is much higher than your probability of success using a non-recognised, non-regulated and non-controlled course of action.  I don’t know how old you are, but you must also consider the effect of using marijuana for decades, and also consider that this course of action will prevent you from ever boarding an international flight, as you will not be able to take your stash with you. I beg you to think carefully about this course of action. Best wishes for Christmas Mark Optometrist Sydney, Australia "tom" <l…@home.com> wrote in message

news:F45wd.576635$D%.503257@attbi_s51… – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> I have been studying the drug options for > glaucoma.  I dont have any idea with regards to > effectiveness, but there is no doubt in my mind > anyway that marijuana is far and away the safest > of all the alternatives. > I am a bit scared of taking any of the other > medications for any period of time.  They all > seem to be very potent and dangerous drugs > if they enter the bloodstream.

Response:

I don’t know.  I guess that would be more for the doctor to answer.  I do know that with certain preservative-free products, such as single-use lubricant vials like Bion Tears, I have to be more careful and use them within a certain amount of time after opening the packet because they don’t have preservatives.  I still use them because some preservatives irritate my eyes. Laura – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -On Wed, 22 Dec 2004 03:12:41 GMT, "tom" <l…@home.com> wrote: >So is there any more danger of infection with glaucoma >eye drops than there is for soft contact lens rewetting >solution for example?  It seems from reading the >product information for these drugs that the bottle >is easily contaminated.

Response:

"Sun Chong Hong" <n…@spam.com> wrote in message news:cpujt6$mdm$1@mawar.singnet.com.sg… > Check out the information provided here: > http://www.mfiles.org/Marijuana/medicinal_use/b3_glaucoma.html > Sun Chong Hong

Lets hear from the other side: http://www.marijuanamyths.com/med-glaucoma.php3 It is interesting that anti-marijuana website contains blatant falsehoods where this website is much more careful with the facts. One question in particular.  What side effect or danger would there be in taking a large oral dose of marijuana before bedtime?

Response:

While it is true that the harmful side effects of marijuana may be overstated, it has not been found to be a useful IOP-lowering agent because of its short duration of action.  In order to keep your IOP low enough to protect your optic nerve, you would have to be stoned 24/7. Hard to go around leading a productive life that way.  Also, last time I checked it was…ILLEGAL!!! While we’re talking about "overstating" and "not knowing what you are talking about," lets address your comments about death and blindness from glaucoma drops.  In my nine years as a glaucoma specialist and twelve years treating eye diseases, I have only seen ONE patient admitted to the hospital as a result of glaucoma treatment (an asthmatic patient became short of breath on Betoptic S…he did fine with oxygen, a nebulizer treatment, and discontinuation of the drops). I have seen no deaths or blindness caused by these drops in over 10,000 patients I have treated.  The worst ocular side effect I have seen from these drops has been allergy or corneal irritation, which goes away after you stop them.  Systemically, I have seen fatigue or depression from Alphagan or Timoptic.  As for long track records, while these drops haven’t been around for thousands of years, many have been around for decades (Timoptic’s been around for over 30 years…that’s not enough for you?).  Most of these drops, like Xalatan, for instance, have been around almost 10 years and were in research for several years before that.  Xalatan is safe and effective and is an excellent medication…I’m certain it has prevented many of my patients from losing sight to glaucoma. I agree with others here that it sounds like you are just looking for a way to get cheaper and legalized recreational pot…don’t waste our time promoting it as a useful glaucoma therapy. –Rick Cohn, MD Glaucoma Specialist Winter Park, FL

Response:

"Steve" <no.tha…@nospam.net> wrote in message

news:s4qwd.1144$_t4.35@newsfe2-win.ntli.net… – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> tom wrote: > > I have been studying the drug options for > > glaucoma.  I dont have any idea with regards to > > effectiveness, but there is no doubt in my mind > > anyway that marijuana is far and away the safest > > of all the alternatives. > > I am a bit scared of taking any of the other > > medications for any period of time.  They all > > seem to be very potent and dangerous drugs > > if they enter the bloodstream. > Bad idea, I have heard that Marijuana is used as a painkiller for pain > in chronic conditions like MS, Glaucoma etc. It’s not a treatment of > Glaucoma itself and painful eyes are eyes that are self destructing … > It’s a bit like having a broken leg and smoking for the pain. You’d > still put the leg in plaster wouldn’t you?

Marijuana lowers the pressure in your eye.  Your analogy is not quite accurate.  In fact you dont know what you are talking about.

Response:

I have been studying the drug options for glaucoma.  I dont have any idea with regards to effectiveness, but there is no doubt in my mind anyway that marijuana is far and away the safest of all the alternatives. I am a bit scared of taking any of the other medications for any period of time.  They all seem to be very potent and dangerous drugs if they enter the bloodstream.

Response:

"tom" <l…@home.com> wrote in news:Pasxd.528834$wV.376588@attbi_s54: <snip> > Dr. Cohn wrote the following: > "While it is true that the harmful side effects of marijuana may be > overstated, it has not been found to be a useful IOP-lowering agent > because of its short duration of action.  In order to keep your IOP > low enough to protect your optic nerve, you would have to be stoned > 24/7." > I would be grateful if Dr. Cohn posted the details of any scientific > studies which lead to this conclusion.

I’m not Dr. Cohn, but you can find reference here   http://www.medmjscience.org/Pages/reports/nihpt4.bhtml (first reference that came up when I did a google search on "marijuana iop") "The dose of marijuana necessary to produce a clinically relevant effect in the short term appears to produce an unacceptable level of undesirable side effects such as euphoria, systemic hypotension, and/or dry eye and conjunctival hyperemia in the majority of glaucoma patients in whom the drug has been carefully studied. No data have been published on studies of long-term ocular and systemic effects of the use of marijuana by glaucoma patients." Mind you, hypotension is a serious risk factor *for* glaucoma.   Glaucoma is *not* elevated intraocular pressure, but damage to the optic nerve and if the optic nerve isn’t well "fed" by an adequate blood supply, damage will ensue. A study done in 1975 indicated that the IOP returned to baseline about 4 hours after smoking. The Glaucoma Research Foundation also has an article on their website at http://www.glaucoma.org/treating/treatment/marijuana.html which states "The high dose of marijuana necessary to produce a clinically relevant effect on IOP in the short term requires constant inhalation, as much as every three hours. The number of significant side effects generated by long-term oral use of marijuana or long-term inhalation of marijuana smoke make marijuana a poor choice in the treatment of glaucoma, a chronic disease requiring proven and effective treatment." Sherry

Response:

Tom, I did not read any opposite agenda in Dr. Cohn message. Instead, I always have seen him, for a long time, trying to help us, glaucoma sufferers, explaining and clarifying many aspects of the disease. Small pupil ( a glaucoma sufferer) Tom wrote:

" <eyegu…@aol.com> wrote in message

news:1103335401.798055.175620@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com… > While it is true that the harmful side effects of marijuana may be >—

Product information about Xalatan: http://www.pfizer.com/download/uspi_xalatan.pdf This does not strike me as exactly safe, and this is the research from Pfizer and we can see with Celebrax that we cannot be completely confident in that which a drug company says about their product when they are making so much money from their product. I am also disturbed that you are impugning my motives here.  This suggests that you have an agenda.  I do have an agenda, which is to find out as much as possible about all possible treatments to reduce IOP.  Apparently your agenda is exactly the opposite. "

Response:

Check out the information provided here: http://www.mfiles.org/Marijuana/medicinal_use/b3_glaucoma.html Sun Chong Hong

Response:

<eyegu…@aol.com> wrote in message

news:1103335401.798055.175620@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com… – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> While it is true that the harmful side effects of marijuana may be > overstated, it has not been found to be a useful IOP-lowering agent > because of its short duration of action.  In order to keep your IOP low > enough to protect your optic nerve, you would have to be stoned 24/7. > Hard to go around leading a productive life that way.  Also, last time > I checked it was…ILLEGAL!!! > While we’re talking about "overstating" and "not knowing what you > are talking about," lets address your comments about death and > blindness from glaucoma drops.  In my nine years as a glaucoma > specialist and twelve years treating eye diseases, I have only seen ONE > patient admitted to the hospital as a result of glaucoma treatment (an > asthmatic patient became short of breath on Betoptic S…he did fine > with oxygen, a nebulizer treatment, and discontinuation of the drops). > I have seen no deaths or blindness caused by these drops in over 10,000 > patients I have treated.  The worst ocular side effect I have seen from > these drops has been allergy or corneal irritation, which goes away > after you stop them.  Systemically, I have seen fatigue or depression > from Alphagan or Timoptic.  As for long track records, while these > drops haven’t been around for thousands of years, many have been around > for decades (Timoptic’s been around for over 30 years…that’s not > enough for you?).  Most of these drops, like Xalatan, for instance, > have been around almost 10 years and were in research for several years > before that.  Xalatan is safe and effective and is an excellent > medication…I’m certain it has prevented many of my patients from > losing sight to glaucoma. > I agree with others here that it sounds like you are just looking > for a way to get cheaper and legalized recreational pot…don’t waste > our time promoting it as a useful glaucoma therapy. > –Rick Cohn, MD > Glaucoma Specialist > Winter Park, FL

I am not very vain, but if my choice is between being stoned all day long or changing the color of these baby blues, I rather be stoned all day long.

Response:

On Thu, 16 Dec 2004 00:58:13 GMT, "tom" <l…@home.com> wrote: >I have been studying the drug options for >glaucoma.  I dont have any idea with regards to >effectiveness, but there is no doubt in my mind >anyway that marijuana is far and away the safest >of all the alternatives. >I am a bit scared of taking any of the other >medications for any period of time.  They all >seem to be very potent and dangerous drugs >if they enter the bloodstream.

I seriously doubt that you will find much useful, accurate or impartial information about the medical uses of cannabis in the current American political climate. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ REMEMBER TO VOTE… "NONE OF THE ABOVE"

Response:

"tom" <l…@home.com> wrote in news:F45wd.576635$D%.503257@attbi_s51: > I have been studying the drug options for > glaucoma.  I dont have any idea with regards to > effectiveness, but there is no doubt in my mind > anyway that marijuana is far and away the safest > of all the alternatives. > I am a bit scared of taking any of the other > medications for any period of time.  They all > seem to be very potent and dangerous drugs > if they enter the bloodstream.

Marijuana is implicated in lung cancer, paranoia, apathy, etc.  It’s only effective at lowering the IOP for a very short period of time so you need to smoke several times a day and can never stop. Don’t worry about using glaucoma drops.  Some have less side effects than others, some people never experience any of the side effects.  I was on Xalatan for 5 years with no problems. Get a good glaucoma specialist and follow his or her instructions for you. Sherry

Response:

"Sherry" <she…@excite.com> wrote in message

news:Xns95C5EE69A7AD7TansyRagwortNetscape@130.133.1.4… – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> "tom" <l…@home.com> wrote in news:O5Mxd.216770$5K2.177763@attbi_s03: > <snip> > > I have read studys that indicate the lower your > > blood pressure the better.  I doubt very much > > that hypotension is a problem for the optic nerve. > > I also am not so sure that THC causes hypotension. > "Marijuana and delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) increase heart rate, > slightly increase supine blood pressure, and on occasion produce marked > orthostatic hypotension." > http://www.cannabis.net/cardiovascular/ > The lower the better for your heart, not your eyes.  Both hypertension > and hypotension have been implicated as possible risk factors for > normal tension glaucoma. > http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi? > cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=10416743&dopt=Abstract > "Patients who had field progression showed significantly lower > nocturnal blood pressure variables, with the dips of the systolic, > diastolic, and mean arterial pressure significantly larger " > > I am wondering if there is anything further on the > > following: > > ". . . Because the possibility exists that marijuana (or its > > components) may be useful in treating glaucoma, the American Academy > > on Ophthalmology Committee on Drugs believes that a long term > > clinical study, designed to test the safety and efficacy of > > marijuana in the prevention of progressive optic nerve damage and > > consequent visual field loss, appears appropriate." > "The American Academy of Ophthalmology (1992) stated: "There is > evidence that marijuana (or its components), taken orally or by > inhalation can lower intraocular pressure. However, there are no > conclusive studies to date to indicate that marijuana (or its > components) can safely and effectively lower intraocular pressure > enough to prevent optic nerve damage. . . . The dose of marijuana > necessary to produce a clinically relevant effect in the short term > appears to produce an unacceptable level of undesirable side effects > such as euphoria, systemic hypotension, and/or dry eye and conjunctival > hyperemia in the majority of glaucoma patients in whom the drug has > been carefully studied. No data have been published on studies of long- > term ocular and systemic effects of the use of marijuana by glaucoma > patients." > http://www.hivpositive.com/f-Nutrition/MedicalMarijuana/MM- > Glaucoma.html > > I have also read the warnings for Xalatan which > > apparently is one of the safer drops to lower IOP. > > I do not understand why infection is an issue with > > this drug and seemingly all the others.  Infection does > > not appear to be an issue with contact lens solution. > > Or visine for that matter. > Infection is a risk with any eye drops if the tip of the bottle and > consequently the fluid itself gets contaminated.  Infection is a > serious problem with glaucoma patients who have had cutting surgery – > trabs, shunts, etc.  Contact lens wearers are not only at risk of > infection but also corneal ulcers.

I guess if you have heart failure or some other cardiovascular disease  you may not want to lower your blood pressure.  But for the most part, low blood pressure is good for your organs. I am pretty certain that low blood pressure is good for your brain, and therefore it must be good for your optic nerve.  I am not a doctor but I would be very surprised to be wrong here. I also dont think that THC reduces blood pressure or this would be another medicinal use for it and I dont think this is the case.  I would be less surprised if I was wrong here there.

Response:

I think I’d like to see the evidence for your claim that marijuana is efficacious in lowering IOP. It would seem that marijuana is often seen as a "cure all" according to some people. Of course it has been around for thousands of years and so has glaucoma but no one seems to have managed to use this readily available substance as anything other than a recreational drug. Research has been carried out here in the UK into the medicinal use of the drug for certain illnesses and conditions. It was reported that it sort of worked for some people in some circumstances. I don’t recall that it was credited with universal curative properties or was even a significant advance in medical science. There were however lots of addicts advocating its use for medical reasons. Most people came to the conclusion that they simply wanted the recreational use of the substance to be made legal. I wonder if that record is playing again? I think that professionals researching treatments would consider any substance, particularly something as cheap as marijuana, without needing much advice. I expect it’s been tried but maybe not. Checkout.

Response:

"Tom" <lf…@spam.net> wrote in message

news:zeidnVE1qv2ig_7fRVn-qg@comcast.com… > It has been suggested that determing whether > marijuana could be effective as a glaucoma > medication would be a long process. > It seems to me that it would not be all that > difficult.  The first step would be to determine > whether oral dosing lowers IOP. > If oral dosing reduces IOP, then marijuana could then > soaked in various solvents and solutions.  If any of > these lowered IOP with oral dosing, then it would > seem natural that direct application to the eye of these > solutions should also lower IOP.

It’s a great pity that marijuana does not reduce imbecility Tom then you might just benefit. Do you suffer from Glaucoma or are you just a troll? Since you reappear here on a regular basis and complain if anyone objects to your outlandish views I think it more likely that the former is correct.

Response:

It has been suggested that determing whether marijuana could be effective as a glaucoma medication would be a long process. It seems to me that it would not be all that difficult.  The first step would be to determine whether oral dosing lowers IOP. If oral dosing reduces IOP, then marijuana could then soaked in various solvents and solutions.  If any of these lowered IOP with oral dosing, then it would seem natural that direct application to the eye of these solutions should also lower IOP.

Response:

Hello again Tom I’m not going to comment on the posting directly, but I would like to say that you have stimulated one of the most interesting discussion threads that I have seen in my time perusing this newsgroup.  Thank you for commencing this thread. Best wishes Mark Schmidt Optometrist Sydney, Australia "tom" <l…@home.com> wrote in message

news:F45wd.576635$D%.503257@attbi_s51… – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> I have been studying the drug options for > glaucoma.  I dont have any idea with regards to > effectiveness, but there is no doubt in my mind > anyway that marijuana is far and away the safest > of all the alternatives. > I am a bit scared of taking any of the other > medications for any period of time.  They all > seem to be very potent and dangerous drugs > if they enter the bloodstream.

Response:

"tom" <l…@home.com> wrote in news:O5Mxd.216770$5K2.177763@attbi_s03: <snip> > I have read studys that indicate the lower your > blood pressure the better.  I doubt very much > that hypotension is a problem for the optic nerve. > I also am not so sure that THC causes hypotension.

"Marijuana and delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) increase heart rate, slightly increase supine blood pressure, and on occasion produce marked orthostatic hypotension." http://www.cannabis.net/cardiovascular/ The lower the better for your heart, not your eyes.  Both hypertension and hypotension have been implicated as possible risk factors for normal tension glaucoma. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi? cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=10416743&dopt=Abstract "Patients who had field progression showed significantly lower nocturnal blood pressure variables, with the dips of the systolic, diastolic, and mean arterial pressure significantly larger " > I am wondering if there is anything further on the > following: > ". . . Because the possibility exists that marijuana (or its > components) may be useful in treating glaucoma, the American Academy > on Ophthalmology Committee on Drugs believes that a long term > clinical study, designed to test the safety and efficacy of > marijuana in the prevention of progressive optic nerve damage and > consequent visual field loss, appears appropriate."

"The American Academy of Ophthalmology (1992) stated: "There is evidence that marijuana (or its components), taken orally or by inhalation can lower intraocular pressure. However, there are no conclusive studies to date to indicate that marijuana (or its components) can safely and effectively lower intraocular pressure enough to prevent optic nerve damage. . . . The dose of marijuana necessary to produce a clinically relevant effect in the short term appears to produce an unacceptable level of undesirable side effects such as euphoria, systemic hypotension, and/or dry eye and conjunctival hyperemia in the majority of glaucoma patients in whom the drug has been carefully studied. No data have been published on studies of long- term ocular and systemic effects of the use of marijuana by glaucoma patients." http://www.hivpositive.com/f-Nutrition/MedicalMarijuana/MM- Glaucoma.html > I have also read the warnings for Xalatan which > apparently is one of the safer drops to lower IOP. > I do not understand why infection is an issue with > this drug and seemingly all the others.  Infection does > not appear to be an issue with contact lens solution. > Or visine for that matter.

Infection is a risk with any eye drops if the tip of the bottle and consequently the fluid itself gets contaminated.  Infection is a serious problem with glaucoma patients who have had cutting surgery – trabs, shunts, etc.  Contact lens wearers are not only at risk of infection but also corneal ulcers.

Response:

"Sherry" <she…@excite.com> wrote in message

news:Xns95C4D115F50D4TansyRagwortNetscape@130.133.1.4… – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> "tom" <l…@home.com> wrote in news:Pasxd.528834$wV.376588@attbi_s54: > <snip> > > Dr. Cohn wrote the following: > > "While it is true that the harmful side effects of marijuana may be > > overstated, it has not been found to be a useful IOP-lowering agent > > because of its short duration of action.  In order to keep your IOP > > low enough to protect your optic nerve, you would have to be stoned > > 24/7." > > I would be grateful if Dr. Cohn posted the details of any scientific > > studies which lead to this conclusion. > I’m not Dr. Cohn, but you can find reference here > http://www.medmjscience.org/Pages/reports/nihpt4.bhtml > (first reference that came up when I did a google search on "marijuana > iop") > "The dose of marijuana necessary to produce a clinically relevant > effect in the short term appears to produce an unacceptable level of > undesirable side effects such as euphoria, systemic hypotension, and/or > dry eye and conjunctival hyperemia in the majority of glaucoma patients > in whom the drug has been carefully studied. No data have been > published on studies of long-term ocular and systemic effects of the > use of marijuana by glaucoma patients." > Mind you, hypotension is a serious risk factor *for* glaucoma. > Glaucoma is *not* elevated intraocular pressure, but damage to the > optic nerve and if the optic nerve isn’t well "fed" by an adequate > blood supply, damage will ensue. > A study done in 1975 indicated that the IOP returned to baseline about > 4 hours after smoking. > The Glaucoma Research Foundation also has an article on their website > at http://www.glaucoma.org/treating/treatment/marijuana.html which > states "The high dose of marijuana necessary to produce a clinically > relevant effect on IOP in the short term requires constant inhalation, > as much as every three hours. The number of significant side effects > generated by long-term oral use of marijuana or long-term inhalation of > marijuana smoke make marijuana a poor choice in the treatment of > glaucoma, a chronic disease requiring proven and effective treatment." > Sherry

I have read studys that indicate the lower your blood pressure the better.  I doubt very much that hypotension is a problem for the optic nerve. I also am not so sure that THC causes hypotension. I am wondering if there is anything further on the following: ". . . Because the possibility exists that marijuana (or its components) may be useful in treating glaucoma, the American Academy on Ophthalmology Committee on Drugs believes that a long term clinical study, designed to test the safety and efficacy of marijuana in the prevention of progressive optic nerve damage and consequent visual field loss, appears appropriate." I have also read the warnings for Xalatan which apparently is one of the safer drops to lower IOP. I do not understand why infection is an issue with this drug and seemingly all the others.  Infection does not appear to be an issue with contact lens solution. Or visine for that matter.

Response:

"Mark Schmidt" <mark_schm…@hotmail.com> wrote in message

news:41c142b0$0$13948$afc38c87@news.optusnet.com.au… – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Hi Tom > How can you seriously contemplate using an illicit drug, which has never had > any research attached to it, and is acknowledged as being harmful to your > general system, to address a local (eye) problem when you cannot measure the > effectiveness of the treatment, since no qualified practitioner would ever > agree to monitor your progress, as they would be implicated in an illegal > act and could jeopardise their Practicing License.  Please understand that > all drugs can have side-effects, which vary from person to person, but your > probability of successful, long term treatment on correct Doctor-prescribed > drugs is much higher than your probability of success using a > non-recognised, non-regulated and non-controlled course of action.  I don’t > know how old you are, but you must also consider the effect of using > marijuana for decades, and also consider that this course of action will > prevent you from ever boarding an international flight, as you will not be > able to take your stash with you. > I beg you to think carefully about this course of action. > Best wishes for Christmas > Mark > Optometrist > Sydney, Australia > "tom" <l…@home.com> wrote in message > news:F45wd.576635$D%.503257@attbi_s51… > > I have been studying the drug options for > > glaucoma.  I dont have any idea with regards to > > effectiveness, but there is no doubt in my mind > > anyway that marijuana is far and away the safest > > of all the alternatives. > > I am a bit scared of taking any of the other > > medications for any period of time.  They all > > seem to be very potent and dangerous drugs > > if they enter the bloodstream.

At this point I am not contemplating anything.  I am trying to gather information. I know for a fact that the risks of marijuana are overstated.  This drug has been around for thousands of years and noone ever has died from it.  All the other drugs that I have seen to treat IOP can kill you, and further if they dont kill you they can blind you. It is also bothersome that these drugs dont have the long track record that marijuana has.  For example, I was worried about viox when it first came out because it lacked history.  Aspirin is safer than all the newer drugs at least with respect to the fact that it has been around for so long.  Marijuana has a much longer history than aspirin. What I dont understand is why people that suffer from IOP are not putting some major heat on the powers that be for research on the benefits of marijuana with respect to IOP. I am also wondering if marijuana is effective against IOP if ingested instead of smoked.  If it is effective taken orally, this would be one huge point in its favor.

Response:

"tom" <l…@home.com> wrote in news:JC5yd.270077$HA.56023@attbi_s01: <snip> > So is there any more danger of infection with glaucoma > eye drops than there is for soft contact lens rewetting > solution for example?  It seems from reading the > product information for these drugs that the bottle > is easily contaminated.

Product information from Drugs.com for Visine which can be found at (using TinyURL for the link) http://tinyurl.com/6ew85: "Do not touch the dropper to any surface, including the eyes or hands. The dropper is sterile. If it becomes contaminated, it could cause an infection in the eye." I have several bottles of different types of lubricating drops – they all warn about not touching the tip to anything to avoid contamination. Contact lenses, if not properly cared for, can cause serious eye infection.  I would think that anyone who has purchased contact lenses would be given the instructions for proper care at the time of first getting them.  At http://www.eyesearch.com/contact.lens.solutions.htm is instructions for the different types of lenses mentioning the need for disinfecting. Sherry

Response:

"Laura" <mcki…@hotmail.com> wrote in message

news:ve6fs0djnf7jdrj4ltkcfd59lo042q9eos@4ax.com… > Seems to me infection is a possibility with * anything * you put in > your eye, simply because you’re putting something foreign into it. > Hence, wash your hands, don’t touch the bottle tip, etc. > Laura > On Tue, 21 Dec 2004 02:43:58 GMT, "tom" <l…@home.com> wrote: > >I have also read the warnings for Xalatan which > >apparently is one of the safer drops to lower IOP. > >I do not understand why infection is an issue with > >this drug and seemingly all the others.  Infection does > >not appear to be an issue with contact lens solution. > >Or visine for that matter.

So is there any more danger of infection with glaucoma eye drops than there is for soft contact lens rewetting solution for example?  It seems from reading the product information for these drugs that the bottle is easily contaminated.

Response:

tom wrote: > I have been studying the drug options for > glaucoma.  I dont have any idea with regards to > effectiveness, but there is no doubt in my mind > anyway that marijuana is far and away the safest > of all the alternatives. > I am a bit scared of taking any of the other > medications for any period of time.  They all > seem to be very potent and dangerous drugs > if they enter the bloodstream.

Bad idea, I have heard that Marijuana is used as a painkiller for pain in chronic conditions like MS, Glaucoma etc. It’s not a treatment of Glaucoma itself and painful eyes are eyes that are self destructing … It’s a bit like having a broken leg and smoking for the pain. You’d still put the leg in plaster wouldn’t you?

Response:

<eyegu…@aol.com> wrote in message

news:1103335401.798055.175620@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com… – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> While it is true that the harmful side effects of marijuana may be > overstated, it has not been found to be a useful IOP-lowering agent > because of its short duration of action.  In order to keep your IOP low > enough to protect your optic nerve, you would have to be stoned 24/7. > Hard to go around leading a productive life that way.  Also, last time > I checked it was…ILLEGAL!!! > While we’re talking about "overstating" and "not knowing what you > are talking about," lets address your comments about death and > blindness from glaucoma drops.  In my nine years as a glaucoma > specialist and twelve years treating eye diseases, I have only seen ONE > patient admitted to the hospital as a result of glaucoma treatment (an > asthmatic patient became short of breath on Betoptic S…he did fine > with oxygen, a nebulizer treatment, and discontinuation of the drops). > I have seen no deaths or blindness caused by these drops in over 10,000 > patients I have treated.  The worst ocular side effect I have seen from > these drops has been allergy or corneal irritation, which goes away > after you stop them.  Systemically, I have seen fatigue or depression > from Alphagan or Timoptic.  As for long track records, while these > drops haven’t been around for thousands of years, many have been around > for decades (Timoptic’s been around for over 30 years…that’s not > enough for you?).  Most of these drops, like Xalatan, for instance, > have been around almost 10 years and were in research for several years > before that.  Xalatan is safe and effective and is an excellent > medication…I’m certain it has prevented many of my patients from > losing sight to glaucoma. > I agree with others here that it sounds like you are just looking > for a way to get cheaper and legalized recreational pot…don’t waste > our time promoting it as a useful glaucoma therapy. > –Rick Cohn, MD > Glaucoma Specialist > Winter Park, FL

Product information about Xalatan: http://www.pfizer.com/download/uspi_xalatan.pdf This does not strike me as exactly safe, and this is the research from Pfizer and we can see with Celebrax that we cannot be completely confident in that which a drug company says about their product when they are making so much money from their product. I am also disturbed that you are impugning my motives here.  This suggests that you have an agenda.  I do have an agenda, which is to find out as much as possible about all possible treatments to reduce IOP.  Apparently your agenda is exactly the opposite.

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Seems to me infection is a possibility with * anything * you put in your eye, simply because you’re putting something foreign into it. Hence, wash your hands, don’t touch the bottle tip, etc. Laura – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -On Tue, 21 Dec 2004 02:43:58 GMT, "tom" <l…@home.com> wrote: >I have also read the warnings for Xalatan which >apparently is one of the safer drops to lower IOP. >I do not understand why infection is an issue with >this drug and seemingly all the others.  Infection does >not appear to be an issue with contact lens solution. >Or visine for that matter.

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"Looker" <loo…@firstpobox.com> wrote in message

news:926da283.0412190859.5113c11b@posting.google.com… > Tom, > I did not read any opposite agenda in Dr. Cohn message. Instead, I > always have seen him, for a long time, trying to help us, glaucoma > sufferers, explaining and clarifying many aspects of the disease. > Small pupil ( a glaucoma sufferer)

If my response was rude, I apologize. Dr. Cohn wrote the following: "While it is true that the harmful side effects of marijuana may be overstated, it has not been found to be a useful IOP-lowering agent because of its short duration of action.  In order to keep your IOP low enough to protect your optic nerve, you would have to be stoned 24/7." I would be grateful if Dr. Cohn posted the details of any scientific studies which lead to this conclusion.

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Well you know the answer Tom; get stoned, stay stoned and let us know how you got on 10 years from now. In the meantime, I’ll stick to prescribed medication which has prevented deterioration of my sight for the past five years. Checkout.

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Filed under: Glaucoma Drops

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