Re: Pain in the Back of the Eyes

December 15th, 2009 by Dr Langis Michaud

Ken wrote:
I’ve been experiencing some sort of eye pain towards the back of both my eyes for about a year now. It tends to persist for most of the day, but really shows itself when I first wake up. Activities like reading or using the computer exasperates the pain.

My GP prescribed me with eye drops and artificial tear, which didn’t work.

I’m current a grade 12 student and it really irritates me to not be able to study. I even tried changing my glasses but nothing seems to work.

Thanks for taking the time to read.

ANSWER

Dear Ken

Eye pain can appear from several causes. The type of symptoms that you have and the fact that is worst in the morning makes me to think about vascular problems instead of eye problems. The best way to find out would be to investigate it through imaging (scan, etc). You should ask your GP to refer you to an internist or a neuro-ophthalmologist to find out. In the meantime, ask your optometrist to document your eye pressure, a complete visual field assessment and to perform a dilated fundus exam to rule out any pathology that may cause this.

Thanks for your interest.

Dr. Langis Michaud, OD, MSc, FAAO
Associate Professor
Université de Montréal, School of Optometry

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