Monday, June 20, 2011

May you live in interesting times.....

Back in 2007 I had cataracts surgery in both eyes; left eye in July or so, right eye in November.  They were a fast growing cataract and I went from seeing well to very poorly in just a few months.  The surgery went well and I've been pretty happy with my sight until recently.  Lately it almost seems like the cataract has come back to my left eye.

That's not possible, of course, but it sure looks like it from the inside!  My surgery was done in Florida so I'm not going back to them.  I found the Shepard Eye Center in Las Vegas and made an appointment.  The doctor suggested trying glasses first; I did that but it did absolutely nothing.  So  it's time for surgery.  Here is something I found on the web.

"The most common complication of Cataract Surgery is opacification of the posterior lens capsule resulting in the formation of a Secondary or After Cataract, which occurs after as many as 30% of Cataract Surgery procedures. When this occurs you will experience a gradual blurring of your vision. Fortunately your surgeon is able to use a YAG Laser to perform a quick painless procedure called a YAG Laser Capsulotomy in which a small opening is created in the cloudy membrane allowing your vision to be restored."

It was an amazing experience.  Got up at OMG Early so we could get to the doctor's office by 07:30.  We were out before 08:30 and now my left eye is almost perfect.  It's still a bit blurry from the dilation but unless something nasty happens, it's great.  The procedure is simple (for the patient!), you get about 8 different eye drops then you put your face in one of those machines that holds your chin and forehead steady.  The doctor turns on the machine and you see this cluster of red lights; she says 'Focus on my ear ring'.  It's bright but not bad.  There are lots of small clicks and snaps as the doctor uses the laser but there is no pain or anything.  It was kind of tough to see the ear ring sometimes since it seemed to be in the middle of the red light cluster.  When she stopped, I could see.  How cool is that!  Hell, I probably won't get as lost since I'll be able to see the street signs.

I'll go back in about a month to have a review.  But in the mean time, I'm going to be enjoying seeing stuff again. 

Have a good one!

2 comments:

Croft said...

Wow! Great procedure! There are some great things about USA medical care!

Unknown said...

It's always good to see again. I suffer from a fast rotating astigmatism that forces new glasses every year. Each time it is like seeing anew.

Enjoy the new vision!