Anybody still up? Or any of you early risers in other parts of the world?

I have been followed by an ophthalmologists for at least 5 years for a larger than normal blind spot in my left eye (but not big enough to cause great concern). It hasn't "grown" since he has been following me. But now he seems t o think that I have something called Adie's pupil (and no Adie isn't a teacher).

Here's the scoop on it.

Adie's Pupil
Adie's pupil is a neurological condition of unknown origin with an unusual, asymmetric presentation known as anisocoria, an inequality in the size of the pupils of the eyes. It is believed to be a result of damage to the nerve innervating a muscle of the eye known as the ciliary body. Alternately, the problem may be located at the ciliary ganglion, a kind of nerve junction structure from which the nerve to the ciliary body runs. Accommodation, or the adjustment of the eye for distance, is affected, as well as pupillary dilation and contraction, the ability of the eye's iris to open or close in response to ambient light. Adie's pupil primarily affects women from 20 to 40 years of age. It is considered to be a benign condition with no known cure. When Deep Tendon Reflexes (DTRs) of the legs—knee and ankle jerks—are also affected, accompanied by symptoms including localized, discreet areas of the skin that do not sweat, postural hypotension (low blood pressure related to sudden standing or rising), and unsteady heart rhythms, the condition is referred to as Adie's syndrome.) SOURCE: HEALTHMED ONLINE

My vision has only changed in tiny increments over the years. I'm 20/200 and have glasses with less than 2 diopters OU and my reading up close is 20/30 without bifocals and 20/10 with correction. The enlargedl blind spot is OS, which is the same side as the transplant (cells for (Am I impressing you with my terminology? I used to work for a group of ophthalmologists).

Has anyone else experienced anything like this? I look kind of weird with pupils of two different sizes, and it comes and goes. I don't recall my irregular pupil discovery until about 5 years ago, but it might have been there earlier but wasn't noticable. I have a friend who claims EVERYTHING is a result of having PD - and in a roundabout way this might be true in my case.

But after reading the symptoms of this disorder, is it possible that some of my symptoms could be contributed too having ANOTHER neurological disease? Or even worse, maybe I don't even have Parkinson's (shudder) I doubt seriously the last claim, because I am majorly responsive to dopaminergic therapy (aka Sinemet). It is also possible that during the experimental surgery, the surgeon may have damaged my eye somehow - but there's no way to prove any of that.

So why did I write this? Because it brings to light what I consider to be another flaw in PD research. Are the deep tendon reflexes causing knee jerks (what I have been claiming are dyskinesias or dystonia) due to PD or Adie's pupil? In comparing other symptoms, Ido not have orthostatic hypotension but do have a minor heart murmur.

Another point to consider is t h is - as we age, so many symptoms mimic PD - like rigidiity, balance difficulty, memory loss, etc. Another reason why we need to look at our assessment tools in research and revamp them.

REALLY going to bed now zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Peg