The leakage has started again. We found out at the hospital yesterday. Munchkin was really irritated about keeping his eyes closed for them to be dilated. And somehow, ever since we left home, I was expecting bad news. We've had three exams in the past year, all of which indicated that my son's Coats was stable. I had wondered whether our good fortune would sustain.
This time, the exudates (old leakage) had reduced, but other blood vessels had swollen and have begun leaking. Amazing, how quickly things can change in four months. The good news is that these vessels are still a decent distance away from the macula, so by God's grace his vision remains unaffected.
I was in such a tizzy after having the Fundus photos taken that I agreed to leave the hospital without thinking. Poppet's father wanted to delay it until after we come back from his parents place - which would make it another two weeks. By that time, Poppet's school would have started again. I agreed at the time but something didn't seem right....anyway, now I'm hoping to fix procedure for next Wednesday. We leave for his grandparents' place on Saturday.
The whole general anesthesia thing still gives me the jitters. And there's so much in flux at the office. I have a hundred loose ends to tie up before I can go away without worrying about being fired while I'm away. :-P
More after we've organized everything. Hang in there, Munchkin. I have faith this will all work out.
Showing posts with label Vision check. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Vision check. Show all posts
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Friday, December 19, 2008
Pre-eye exam jitters
Last Christmas, I was thrilled to post that my son's Coats Disease had stabilized after two rounds of cryo and laser. It was my best Christmas gift ever.
Now it's that time of the year again. And just like last year, the eye exam has been delayed twice for one reason or another. He's actually not past his due date but I usually start early because I work myself up into such a frenzy that I want to know the results as soon as possible. He's had two more eye exams (one in March, the other in August) and the doctor says there's been no fresh leakage. The exudates (existing leakage) are still there, though. The doctor says they'll get absorbed over time, or he can use laser.
The kid also has glasses now - very, very low power and in both eyes. He also hasn't complained of any floaters or other discomfort throughout the year.
This time, we've kept missing the doctor. he was away for an emergency surgery the first time and the next week, I clean forgot. The stress - a long story not involving my son and meant strictly for my other blog - is making me senile. We were all set for tomorrow, but it turns out the doctor's going to be in surgery again.
On Monday, the kid has his school's annual program. Tuesday's supposed to be a "bad day" for kids to be taken to a hospital; Wednesday the doctor's in surgery again; Thursday's Christmas, so the hospital OPD is closed; and Friday's surgery day again. Saturday we're leaving to visit my in-laws for a week. And then school re-opens again. And I am falling apart with the stress. It always builds up in the days running up the test.
A few days ago, a colleague mentioned my son's case to her eye doctor. He doesn't know my son's doctor but recommended someone else in the city. So that's another thing driving me crazy - do we stick by our doctor or get a third opinion (we've already had a second opinion - and it matched our doctor's).
Anyway, I'm sooo hoping the doctor will be able to spare some time to see my son tomorrow. Hopefully his assitant will be able to give me a clearer reply.
I honestly don't think I'll be able to go two weeks without knowing how my son is doing. The thing is, his condition has been stable since the last cryo in Oct 07 - which makes me wonder if all this is too good to be true.
I'm hoping and praying...God bless you little fellow. You're the best thing that ever happened to me.
Now it's that time of the year again. And just like last year, the eye exam has been delayed twice for one reason or another. He's actually not past his due date but I usually start early because I work myself up into such a frenzy that I want to know the results as soon as possible. He's had two more eye exams (one in March, the other in August) and the doctor says there's been no fresh leakage. The exudates (existing leakage) are still there, though. The doctor says they'll get absorbed over time, or he can use laser.
The kid also has glasses now - very, very low power and in both eyes. He also hasn't complained of any floaters or other discomfort throughout the year.
This time, we've kept missing the doctor. he was away for an emergency surgery the first time and the next week, I clean forgot. The stress - a long story not involving my son and meant strictly for my other blog - is making me senile. We were all set for tomorrow, but it turns out the doctor's going to be in surgery again.
On Monday, the kid has his school's annual program. Tuesday's supposed to be a "bad day" for kids to be taken to a hospital; Wednesday the doctor's in surgery again; Thursday's Christmas, so the hospital OPD is closed; and Friday's surgery day again. Saturday we're leaving to visit my in-laws for a week. And then school re-opens again. And I am falling apart with the stress. It always builds up in the days running up the test.
A few days ago, a colleague mentioned my son's case to her eye doctor. He doesn't know my son's doctor but recommended someone else in the city. So that's another thing driving me crazy - do we stick by our doctor or get a third opinion (we've already had a second opinion - and it matched our doctor's).
Anyway, I'm sooo hoping the doctor will be able to spare some time to see my son tomorrow. Hopefully his assitant will be able to give me a clearer reply.
I honestly don't think I'll be able to go two weeks without knowing how my son is doing. The thing is, his condition has been stable since the last cryo in Oct 07 - which makes me wonder if all this is too good to be true.
I'm hoping and praying...God bless you little fellow. You're the best thing that ever happened to me.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
More confusion...
Yesterday's visit to the doctor (not the retina specialist but the neighborhood eye doctor who first suspected my son had Coats) was confusing, to say the least. My aim was to find out if the little brat needed glasses. A macular problem would also show up in an eye exam (because of the gray spot I mentioned earlier). But on the first visit, the doctor said he needed to dilate his eyes.
So yesterday, that's what they did. And after looking at his eyes for a really long time, the doc announced that the exudates had increased since he'd last seen my son (in July, when he first suspected Coats). "He needs more laser," he said.
We explained the at the retina specialist had said that he would do some more laser if the exudates didn't get absorbed on their own. And this was just two weeks back. "Well, it's not an emergency, but from what I know of this disease, things can deteriorate very rapidly," said the doctor. My heart sank. Worse, he said that there was some refractive error (meaning he might need glasses) but because his eyes were dilated, he couldn't make a definitive diagnosis. (Okay, so why did he dilate the little fellow's eyes in the first place?) I felt like kicking myself for having started the whole vision check thing in the first place. And suddenly, there was this moment of hatred because this doctor seemed to be raising an alarm for no reason. And hatred for the fact that he could be right.
Anyway, we have to take our son back there after three days ("once the effects of the dilation wear off completely") to see if the refractive error is significant enough to warrant glasses.
In the meantime, my husband and I discussed what we'd been told and came to the conclusion that logically, it made sense that there were more exudates since July since the blood vessels kept leaking between July and October. Also, we trust our retina specialist. He's very blunt and doesn't mince his words, so we doubt he'd have ignored something that was urgent.
We also don't want Poppet to go through another "dilated eyes" episode so soon. The current plan is to take him to his retina specialist a couple of weeks from now, just to be sure. And also ask him a bit more about floaters and other precautions that our son should take to avoid eye strain or inadvertently worsen his Coats. There's also another, very well respected doctor in another city from whom we took a second opinion. I hope to get him on the phone and speak to him also, but that would be weird because he can't see my son's eyes right now and so, asking for an opinion would be unreasonable.
My instincts are usually good, and this time, something tells me it should be okay to wait a couple of weeks and take him to his retina doctor on the 21st. My husband and my mother agree with me on this. Please, God, I hope I'm not wrong.
So yesterday, that's what they did. And after looking at his eyes for a really long time, the doc announced that the exudates had increased since he'd last seen my son (in July, when he first suspected Coats). "He needs more laser," he said.
We explained the at the retina specialist had said that he would do some more laser if the exudates didn't get absorbed on their own. And this was just two weeks back. "Well, it's not an emergency, but from what I know of this disease, things can deteriorate very rapidly," said the doctor. My heart sank. Worse, he said that there was some refractive error (meaning he might need glasses) but because his eyes were dilated, he couldn't make a definitive diagnosis. (Okay, so why did he dilate the little fellow's eyes in the first place?) I felt like kicking myself for having started the whole vision check thing in the first place. And suddenly, there was this moment of hatred because this doctor seemed to be raising an alarm for no reason. And hatred for the fact that he could be right.
Anyway, we have to take our son back there after three days ("once the effects of the dilation wear off completely") to see if the refractive error is significant enough to warrant glasses.
In the meantime, my husband and I discussed what we'd been told and came to the conclusion that logically, it made sense that there were more exudates since July since the blood vessels kept leaking between July and October. Also, we trust our retina specialist. He's very blunt and doesn't mince his words, so we doubt he'd have ignored something that was urgent.
We also don't want Poppet to go through another "dilated eyes" episode so soon. The current plan is to take him to his retina specialist a couple of weeks from now, just to be sure. And also ask him a bit more about floaters and other precautions that our son should take to avoid eye strain or inadvertently worsen his Coats. There's also another, very well respected doctor in another city from whom we took a second opinion. I hope to get him on the phone and speak to him also, but that would be weird because he can't see my son's eyes right now and so, asking for an opinion would be unreasonable.
My instincts are usually good, and this time, something tells me it should be okay to wait a couple of weeks and take him to his retina doctor on the 21st. My husband and my mother agree with me on this. Please, God, I hope I'm not wrong.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Dilation neeeded, sigh!
My son got his vision checked yesterday. First, the doctor's assistant ran through the usual chart with the occluder (covering one eye at a time) and then using the pinhole as well. He read most of the stuff and plainly said when he couldn't read a particular line. It looks like he will need glasses.
From what I could see the assistant writing on his chart, the vision in his good eye has fallen a bit since his initial Coats diagnosis. It's now 6/9, whereas it was 6/6 earlier. His Coats eye had a 6/9 reading then, and I'm not sure what it is now.
After the test, I asked him about the gray spot and he said it wasn't there. So it was probably a floater - coming and going.
There was a long wait after this, during which the brat got awfully impatient.
It was finally his turn and the doctor started to check his sight with various lenses. After a few minutes, the doctor said he couldn't do a proper job unless the eyes were dilated. This, he absolutely refused to do because he knew he'd have to keep his eyes closed for a long time. "Can we come back tomorrow?" he asked. The doctor's assistant tried to convince him to let him put the drops and that's when the little fellow burst into tears and buried his face in my arms.
I know he hates getting his eyes dilated, so I requested the assistant for another appointment. He finally agreed. So we have another appointment today. I pray for good news.
My mother has always ensured that he gets a balanced diet - enough of vitamin A, iron, etc. because she wanted her grandson to have good vision. I got my glasses when I was 16 and my husband doesn't use glasses at all. But if the little tyke needs glasses, so be it. Anything to ensure that his eyes aren't strained. Maybe over time, the vision in his good eye will further improve.
From what I could see the assistant writing on his chart, the vision in his good eye has fallen a bit since his initial Coats diagnosis. It's now 6/9, whereas it was 6/6 earlier. His Coats eye had a 6/9 reading then, and I'm not sure what it is now.
After the test, I asked him about the gray spot and he said it wasn't there. So it was probably a floater - coming and going.
There was a long wait after this, during which the brat got awfully impatient.
It was finally his turn and the doctor started to check his sight with various lenses. After a few minutes, the doctor said he couldn't do a proper job unless the eyes were dilated. This, he absolutely refused to do because he knew he'd have to keep his eyes closed for a long time. "Can we come back tomorrow?" he asked. The doctor's assistant tried to convince him to let him put the drops and that's when the little fellow burst into tears and buried his face in my arms.
I know he hates getting his eyes dilated, so I requested the assistant for another appointment. He finally agreed. So we have another appointment today. I pray for good news.
My mother has always ensured that he gets a balanced diet - enough of vitamin A, iron, etc. because she wanted her grandson to have good vision. I got my glasses when I was 16 and my husband doesn't use glasses at all. But if the little tyke needs glasses, so be it. Anything to ensure that his eyes aren't strained. Maybe over time, the vision in his good eye will further improve.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
