May 13, 2010
Posted by: david : Category:
cataract,
low vision,
recovery
My appointment with my glaucoma specialist went well, except for the fact that I was back to the 20/200 line and even that wasn’t as crisp as a my second PostOp appointment on 27 April (I also believe it was slightly worse than my unscheduled appointment with Dr. Ayres this past Friday.) I’m glad everything looks great, but that isn’t helping me see better. As per Dr. Pro’s (and Dr. Ayres’) recommendation, I’ve scheduled an appointment with Dr. Garg, the retina specialist I saw earlier this year. I have a feeling I know how that appointment will go too. Everything will look fine, but my vision will still suck. Call me Nostradamus. I’ll let you know how things go on 18 or 19 May.
Central Vision Visual Fields Test at Wills Eye
One of the problem I’ve noticed is that I seem to have more blind spots, especially in my central vision. When Eliz and I were working with Jane at softball, I noticed I had trouble following the ball when Eliz would flip the ball to me from three to five feet unless I looked to my right. I’m not sure what the above test indicates, but since I don’t think I’ve ever had this particular visual fields test I don’t think there is anything to compare it to.
Visual Fields Test Machine in the Glaucoma Dept. at Wills Eye
After my appointment at Wills Eye, Eliz and I walked up Walnut Street and stopped into the Associated Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired. I had contacted them just before we moved Salon Supplies + Interiors and ForYourSalon.com out of that disaster of a building (which has been condemned, by the way.) Between the move and setup of the business and waiting to see how things went with the surgery, I didn’t follow up. Looking back, that seems dumb. As it stands now, I don’t think things will improve dramatically, if at all. You may say I’m a pessimist, but I disagree. I would call myself a realist. Sure, I can hope and wish, but I’ve been doing that since I was a small child. Maybe I learn something and gain some confidence.
January 12, 2010
Posted by: david : Category:
Uncategorized
Just a quick update to add my OCT image. I’ve added here and to last night’s post (so you can compare mine with the normal one posted on the Vitreous Retina Macula Consultants of New York website.) I kind of think mine looks like two people laying on the beach on their bellies and seeing just their backs and butts. I’m hoping to hear from the doctor today or tomorrow.
My OCT scan from 11 Jan 2010.
January 12, 2010
Posted by: david : Category:
Uncategorized
What an adventure today at the Pagoda Building at 100 Presidential Ave. After a few minutes in the waiting area, we were called back. I followed Irene into a very dimly lit room, stumbling slightly on one of the stools. I sat on a stool that seemed to be a bit too high for the machine I was supposed to put my chin in while pressing my forehead against the bar. The device that was going to take the images and measurements of my retina looked similar to an older (circa 1998) surveillance camera. Inside the lens was this cool blue light, slightly lighter than the blue light on the machine that reads your IOP, that looked similar to something in a sci fi movie with a thin red line across the horizon that looked like a laser.
My good fortune was that the machine was brand spanking new and both Irene and Todd had not yet mastered it. Irene couldn’t get a good set of images and kept asking me if I was diabetic, which I am not. She then said that the cataract in that eye must be really dense, because they couldn’t get a clear image. She then decided to dilate my eye. (This test was only for the left eye. The right is waiting for the Six Million Dollar Man eye and I haven’t spotted those at Radio Shack yet.) Dr. Pro had asked that the eye be dilated, but Irene thought it wasn’t necessary at the beginning. While my pupil was dilating, Irene stepped out of the room. Todd, Eliz, and I talked about the machine. I asked Todd a question and didn’t get a response. Eliz then answered for him. Seems he didn’t realize I couldn’t see him and he nodded yes to answer my question. After about 10 minutes, Irene walked back in, but Todd wanted his turn on the machine, so Irene coached him. He couldn’t get a good image either. Irene’s turn again.
After about 10 to 15 minutes of trying, we were asked to go wait in another waiting area. We only waited there a couple of minutes and then it was back into the hot seat for me (and I didn’t stumble in the room this time since my eye was dilated…) Finally, Irene was able to get the correct images the doctor ordered. I asked if I could have one put on my flash drive. Irene said no, but said she’d print one out. As she looked through all the images, she realized that they weren’t that good. She asked if she could try again on getting a good image. At this point, either Eliz or I mentioned the Endothelial transplant from December 2008. She then said that might be why she couldn’t get a good image. Whatever. She got some images she was happy with and printed one out for me… In black and white! The doctor will have a look in a day or two. I’ll call on Wednesday to see what the story is.
I’ve got a scanner issue that is stopping me from uploading the image. Hopefully I’ll figure it out tomorrow and have the image up here then. I know it doesn’t look like this image:
OCT demonstrating normal retinal architecture.
My OCT scan from 11 Jan 2010.
So now I have to wait to hear from the doctor. My image is a bit more “hilly” than the image above. I’m hopeful this is the reason for my latest issue. I also hope this can be fixed.
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