Chantho Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 I've Googled this and searched back through the threads to 2012, but I'm not sure if I'm looking correctly. I know that eye problems can be a bad side effect, as in seek immediate medical treatment. I'm almost certainly going to start tapering off Topamax Monday, but I'm concerned. I've been on it for a couple month and, in the past 2-3 weeks my eyes have been burning, achy, itchy. I've had blurred vision. I can't find a description of the eye pain. I don't think this feels like run-of-the-mill allergies, but I'm afraid my anxiety is making mountains out of mole hills. I have just about every side effect for this medication, and now this one? A rare one, to boot? It seems so unlikely? I'm going to mention it Monday. Has anyone had any experience with the eye pain? Or with the discomfort of myopia or eye pressure? Because apparently that is what the side effect is. I'm just wondering if I should go to the eye doctor too or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malachite Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 I got Acute Closed-Angle Glaucoma from Topamax and nearly went blind. If I hadn't gone to the ER in time, I would have. Not to try to make you more anxious. But it's a very serious, though uncommon, side effect. This happened within only two days of starting it, however. I had very blurred vision and eye pain. Turns out it's related to Sulfa drugs, to which I have an idiosyncratic reaction. I would err on the side of caution and get it checked out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chantho Posted June 21, 2014 Author Share Posted June 21, 2014 What sort of pain are we talking, though? Like stabbing pain? Burning? Achy? I'd bet it wasn't the closed-angle glaucoma problem if it usually happens quickly. Surely it wouldn't have taken so long, right? There has to be a different, more reasonable explanation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malachite Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 It was an achy pain. I don't think my explanation of my experience was unreasonable. I don't know if this can happen after a longer use of the drug. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chantho Posted June 21, 2014 Author Share Posted June 21, 2014 (edited) No. I meant a more reasonable explanation to my eye discomfort. I'm sorry... =/ I think I'm making mountains out of molehills as always because of how unlikely it seems that I'd be experiencing this rare side effect now. I didn't mean to make you think I was talking about your explanation of your experience. I'm doing this to everyone lately. Edited June 21, 2014 by chantho Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malachite Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 It's okay, chantho. I am definitely not saying you have this. Just that, with one's eyes, it's good to be careful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malachite Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 Also, I am pretty insane right now and overly sensitive. So, I took what you said wrong. Not your fault. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chantho Posted June 22, 2014 Author Share Posted June 22, 2014 I know how that goes. I am just glad you said something. I'd never have known otherwise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 I would also be cautious about any pain/blurriness/itchiness/etc in your eyes, and see an eye DR. I would definitely do that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chantho Posted June 22, 2014 Author Share Posted June 22, 2014 Noted. I'll go ahead and make an appointment Monday to see our eye doctor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anise Posted July 1, 2014 Share Posted July 1, 2014 I beg you to see your doctor and get off this drug as fast as possible. And believe me, I never, ever, EVER say that about meds. I am not fundamentally anti-med at all. However, after taking Topamax for over a year (please note the amount of time!!), I had idiopathic macular degeneration. It's so rare that doctors told me that they'd never seen it in 30 years of practice. Nobody thought that the drugs used for regular wet AMD would have any effect, but by some miracle, Avastin made a HUGE difference for me. But it was a nightmare that just can't be described. It permanently changed my life and cost many, many, many thousands of dollars before any insurance kicked in. Oh yeah, and I have yet to find anyone who is able to sit through a description of the drug delivery system that's used!! Again, nobody knows for sure what caused this condition, but I did some research, and it has happened to people who took Topamax. I beg you to take this seriously. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted July 1, 2014 Share Posted July 1, 2014 Noted. I'll go ahead and make an appointment Monday to see our eye doctor. Did you get an appt? If so, how did it go? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chantho Posted July 1, 2014 Author Share Posted July 1, 2014 I saw my doctor Monday. She has never heard of the risk of eye issues, but she said that since I didn't want to be on the medication to go ahead and stop it. The eye pain and blurred vision decreased after a couple days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted July 1, 2014 Share Posted July 1, 2014 Glad things have gotten better Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chantho Posted July 1, 2014 Author Share Posted July 1, 2014 Yup. I'm not sure if the pain, etc was caused directly by the meds. While I was on Topamax I had a lot of trouble sleeping due to nightmares. That stopped once I stopped the meds and started on Zyprexa, so the pain could still have been from lack of sleep. Still, I won't be going on Topamax ever again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
december_brigette Posted July 1, 2014 Share Posted July 1, 2014 per my pdoc there is either a paper or a warning on this issue re topamax. we discussed it at my last appt which was last week. He can be a bit odd about things like this - he said "So, are you having any eye issues?" uh, no. I would have brought it up if i was. I tell him all my ailments even if they don't pertain to "teh crazy". He went to med school. He needs to know my whole body. db Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crtclms Posted July 1, 2014 Share Posted July 1, 2014 Anise, my mother has idiopathic macular degeneration, and she never touched Topamax. No family history, either. Correlation is not causation. I am sorry you had such a horrible experience while on Topamax. Thank you for sharing it, other members may identify with it. However, you are in no position to tell people what meds they should and should not take. And hadn't chantho *just* said she is working with her pdoc to titrate off of it? Are the other cases similar to yours found in peer-reviewed papers, or letters by MDs to journals about that type of reaction? If not, good places to look are on Pubmed.com (run by the NIH), and Google Scholar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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