Pregnancy and your eyes

[edKENdance]

I've been reading a lot of literature on refractive changes during pregnancy and all the info I've read basically says the same thing, that your correction will return to your normal correction about 6 weeks or so after birth. This kind of flys in the face of the stories I'm hearing from friends who seem to have had mild or drastic changes in their vision that are permament. I'm interested in in your anecdotal experience in this matter because it strikes kind of close to home right now (having a baby this week) and I might also roll it into a marketing idea for the store since we're a family store it might be nice to offer some sort of incentive for pregnant women who have prescription changes to feel comfortable purchasing glasses as we would remake them at no charge after pregnancy. I'd love to read your stories. Thanks.

[Jacqui]

I didn't know you were pregnant :D

Anyhoo, what I see is returning to almost the same as pre-pregnancy. Your idea might be an interesting one.

[fjpod]

Honestly, after some 30 odd years of examining all kinds of people, there is no change in refractive error during pregnancy, IMHO. If there is, the patient should be concerned about gestational diabetes.

I have never seen an uptick in pregnant women coming in during pregnancy due to changes in vision.

What I do recall, is back in the day of PMMA contact lenses, pregnant women that wore them, would come in with "tight symptoms" and an increase in "spectacle blur". Which for those not alive 30 years ago, is defined as blurry vision for about an hour through spectacles upon removing the hard lenses. Almost everybody had this, but pregnant women seemed to have it more. Increased metabolism during pregnancy causing increased demand for oxygen??...which the PMMA could not give??.

But for normal pregnant women wearing no glasses, glasses, RGPs or soft lenses, there is no refractive change. Just my anecdotal observations.

[Judy Canty]

0 - 6 weeks = blurry vision due to sleeplessness

6 weeks - 18 years = blurry vision due to sleeplessness and add worry over babysitters, school projects, boy/girlfriends and adolescence

18 - 22 years = blurry vision due to sleeplessness because they're away from home/in college and you don't know what the he77 is going on, but you can imagine because you've been there/done that

22 - 25+ years = blurry vision and sleeplessness due to the fact that they're in grad school/under or un-employed with no health insurance and they may be moving back home.

My blurry vision improved when the youngest got his own health and auto insurance, a car payment and an apartment.

[edKENdance]

LOL!. Nice one Judy :cheers:

[Jacqui]

That's interesting, fjpod. When I was doing a lot of mid-wife work most patients reported at least minor changes, mostly blurring at the read distance. Could there have been something other than pregnancy or diabetes that was causing this??

[kcount]

In 20 years I have heard this old-wives story over and over. Only seen a change once, it was noted and the patient was instructed to see her OB immediately. Child was born with special needs issues. Couldn't correlate the vision issues with the child's developmental concerns but the question looms.

I hear another one about young children reading in dark rooms.... Oh and the one about gum staying in your stomach for 7 years... oh and ....:hammer:

[kcount]

That's interesting, fjpod. When I was doing a lot of mid-wife work most patients reported at least minor changes, mostly blurring at the read distance. Could there have been something other than pregnancy or diabetes that was causing this??

um, discomfort and sleepless nights?

[fjpod]

That's interesting, fjpod. When I was doing a lot of mid-wife work most patients reported at least minor changes, mostly blurring at the read distance. Could there have been something other than pregnancy or diabetes that was causing this??

I don't doubt that pregnancy puts demands on the body, and that at times vision may feeled strained, blurred, tired and otherwise...just not normal. Like many things don't feel normal during pregnancy...appetite, sleeping habits, urinary habits,etc. But I have never had a pregnant woman with a transient or permanent change in refractive error...and I hate to use the word never.

What I have seen, but not lately, is pregnant women wearing PMMA CLs become intolerant of their lenses and develop more spectacle blur than usual.

My observations are not a scientific study. Maybe somebody else has input.

[harry888]

The eye is not an isolated part of the body, those that had a major refractive change had other pregnancy changes/issues.

Just what I've noticed in over 20 years of practice.

Harry

[canaanlilli]

What I have found both personally and professionally is that there are some minor changes in your vision while you are pregnant. What I have been told is that these mild changes occur for the same reason your ankles swell, it is a shift in the fluid pressure within corresponding part of your body.

Generally, the changes do not warrant changing the prescription, which is why most OD's in my area will recommend that a woman wait until after the baby is 6 wks old and then have another exam.

Significant changes during pregnancy were generally accompanied by gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, anemia and other potentially dangerous complications. When the OD's I have worked with see these changes in vision they refer their patient to their OB immediately.

The myopic pregnant woman is the patient that the minor changes seem to bother the most.

I was one of those significant changes patients, and had all three of the afore mentioned diagnoses. Also, my vision stayed worse after each birth, just like my hair stayed wavier and has gotten darker with each pregnancy.

All of those things are technically "old wives tales", but science is starting to actually find proof to these tales. They are usually the exception to the rule, though, which I am proud to say I am almost always the exception to the rule.

I offer my pregnant patients 1 rx change remake at the 6-12 wk mark if they need it, mostly to put their minds and hearts at ease. Even if these things are rare, there is no reason to not ensure their comfort and confidence in you as a caring professional.

[k12311997]

I offer my pregnant patients 1 rx change remake at the 6-12 wk mark if they need it, mostly to put their minds and hearts at ease. Even if these things are rare, there is no reason to not ensure their comfort and confidence in you as a caring professional.

:cheers::cheers::cheers::cheers:

[pezfaerie]

Before I was pregnant my rx was OD: +4.50 sph OS: +5.25 -0.50x170 Jan 2006

During pregnancy I expierenced some blurriness wearing my CL's but doc said it was more the hormones making less tears..anyway no rx change during. Had the diabetes glucose test twice the short test and long test because they wanted to make sure I didn't have gestational diabetes due to the size of my baby.I was extreemly swollen during the last week and had an emergency C-section because of it.

About 3-4 months after my rx was OD: +4.00 Sph OS:+4.50 -0.75x 175 Apx. April 2007

The doctor joked with me that I should keep having babies until I don't need correction...ha ha.

[EyeGurl]

Like all things it depends on the woman. Some can wear contacts during preg some not. I have seen permanent shifts though, I always joke the kids just suck the life right out of you in many ways.



But yeah it can cause corneal edema, but that would clear up after 6 weeks. My thought in this, and I am just pulling this out of my ***, is that your cilliary process may change the amount it pumps causing the cornea to change shape while edemic thus causing a flux. Or even the velasity of the vitreous changing the shape of the eye itself. Or the force exerted through labor causing the muscles to tense and causing a perm shift. Or all. Seems like they always go more myopic, ahh if only I had a MD to put on the spot.