Halos in vision at night- struggling to drive.

[Treez21]

Hi, please help. Dh has been getting halos in his vision at night. It did happen a couple of times a few years ago, then nothing until now, when it's been most nights. Is it just stress? He's incredibly stressed, working constantly and very little sleep. Gp looked in eye and suggested blood test. Our town has an urgent eye care hospital which triages via the phone. Should he call them first thing? He has no pain, but does need to drive at night. He's really panicking as it's come on over the weekend when he doesn't feel he's stressed with work, but I explained that stress doesn't just switch on and off. Please help!

Bump.

Well, the older you get, the longer the eyes take to recover from the dazzle effect. Could he get some glasses that help? With anti-glare etc?

Yes I would call the eye care centre tomorrow and if they're concerned they'll call him in to be checked

Could be ophthalmic migraines. I get them caused by fatigue or bright lights.

Thanks. He's in his 30s and the halos are lasting hours. He can't see on the motorway.

Any other symptoms? Nausea/headaches/red eyes?
An eye test tomorrow would be useful.
There is a specific type of glaucoma which can cause halos, but so can other conditions.
It could just be that he needs a pair of driving glasses.

No other symptoms. He does wear glasses. He's terrified he's losing his vision

Does he have astigmatism?

I do and every light has a halo/spiky effect. It has gotten worse in the last couple of years because lights are brighter than they were. The new bulbs they've been putting in street lamps and horrible.

You can get yellow tinted lenses which help.

www.allaboutvision.com/conditions/astigmatism-lights/

No point being too worried when he may just need a new prescription.

Try and see his optician ASAP. Mention the halos and glaucoma when you call in the morning.

Fingers crossed I can get him to ring today.

Has he previously had lasik, I know they that may cause halos, it was mentioned to me as one of the risks of surgery.

Has he seen optometrist? Could be caused by cataracts, young people can get them too.

I would get appt with Optometrist ASAP, who can do referral if necessary. Usually opticians are quiet in the lead up to Christmas so hopefully he could have an appointment in the next day or so.

Good luck.

I’ve been getting something similar over the last 3 weeks - multicoloured halos around street lights and headlights after dark. I phoned the optician for advice and he’s booked me in for a full eye test on Wednesday but told me if I get headaches, eye pain pain or see flashing lights, to go straight to the emergency eye clinic at the hospital - he called them “red flag symptoms”. He also mentioned migraine but I don’t get headaches. I’d suggest seeing an optician soon, they can refer if necessary.

@Treez21

Thanks. He's in his 30s and the halos are lasting hours. He can't see on the motorway.

I get halos through ophthalmic migraine. They last around an hour and I get no other symptoms, no pain. There is no pattern. They are very distracting and I wouldn't be able to drive during an episode.

Forgot to say I'm in my early 40s

I had this and needed a new prescription even though my glasses were less than six months old. I try and avoid driving at night as my eyes are shite even though I’m always on top of my glasses now.

I had a complete panic driving home from taking the kids to swimming lessons one Friday night and ended up feeling blinded and crying.

Thought I had a tumour/stroke - optician put me right in about 15 minutes.

I have this and it only started recently, went to the optician and had all the tests done but they couldn’t find a cause for it! My vision is apparently perfect. I’ll keep an eye on this thread in case anything’s mentioned that sounds possible as a cause for me

if he can't see properly he must not drive.

optician first for an eye check. they will tell him if he needs to see an ophalmologist.

good luck!

@Theworldisquiethere

I have this and it only started recently, went to the optician and had all the tests done but they couldn’t find a cause for it! My vision is apparently perfect. I’ll keep an eye on this thread in case anything’s mentioned that sounds possible as a cause for me

I found this interesting www.theraspecs.com/blog/light-sensitivity-at-night/

Aren’t halos around lights a sign of glaucoma.
He needs to see an optician asap.

Are the halos better or worse when he is wearing glasses?

Cataracts? Normally for older people and easy to cure but I don't know if it happens in younger people. If he has glasses he must be getting an annual check up at the opticians so what do they say?

I had this after lasik surgery. It lasted a year! I couldn't do any night driving as I couldn't judge the distance between vehicles, due to the halos. E.g I thought cars were too close, when they were in fact a distance away. I'm fine now. I'd advise him to go see an optician straight away, and not drive at night until its sorted.

I have an eye condition called keratakonus which causes halos and problems with glare but it sounds unlikely if it has come on suddenly. The treatment is special contact lenses in this case.

Yes, he should call the urgent care eye hospital and also book an eye test. Opticians appointments are taking weeks at the moment but they can see people the same day if it is urgent.

@madisonbridges

Cataracts? Normally for older people and easy to cure but I don't know if it happens in younger people. If he has glasses he must be getting an annual check up at the opticians so what do they say?

Sadly, some cavies are born with cataracts. More usual in the elderly but not exclusively.

Babies, not cavies, blooming iPad!