Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Do you have a question?
I am getting a lot of verbal feedback on the website and the blog, but I am disappointed in the lack of comments posted. SO, I am going to try a new approach. If you have a question, you can ask it here as a comment. I will answer questions with a new post which shoud show up on the first page rather than responding as a comment, which shows up a little deeper into the blog. This way, I hope, your good questions will allow others to benefit from the answer too! Remember, if you are wondering about something, chances are someone else is too! So ask away. Toni
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i need to say that i have a macular hole in baoth eyes at the same time and although i have had surgery in one eye *unsuccessful( and am going through another one in the same eye i feel not enough is ever said about what you can do about not having an operation an just learning to live with the problem. so you cannot dirve read or watch tv so what there are loads of other things that you ccan do. i am not abeing negative and if you only have this condition in one eye then go for it but in two eyes (1 in 5 million) think again.
ReplyDeleteDevoloped a detached retina,within a weeks time,no warning signs b-4 a small pea size floater appeared at the bottom half of my left eye.Within a few days it covered 70% of vision in that eye.The Vitreous Retina Center in New Jersey confirmed & Performed successful vitrectomy(gas bubble).After 2 weeks,bubble dissolved,with no floaters,but after nearly 3 weeks vision is blurry yet.My blood sugar is normal,& had no accidents,Head or eye injuries,so there is no found cause.I'm 61 years old,so I'm thinking there is an age factor.I don't know how much my left eye vision will return, but I am greatfull that my vision has returned.Any thoughts? please reply.
ReplyDeleteDear Anonymous:
ReplyDeleteFirst let me just note for the record I am not a physician and therefor cannot offer a professional medical opinion. What I can tell you is that it sounds fortunate that you realized you had a problem and got quick medical attention. Apparently the hole or tear which preceded the detachment was in the top half of your eye which is why your surgeon was able to use a bubble to help close it. Remember the image of the picture being upside down in the eye that your grade school teachers showed you to explain how the eye works? When you saw the pea size floater at the bottom of the eye it was actually at the top. It also sounds like your retinal detachment (RD) involved the macula. The macula is the small area that gives you your crisp central vision. If the macula became detached it may have been damaged. Certainly more time will be needed to determine what your final visual outcome will be but it sounds like you have good function now even if it isn't quite as crisp as it was before this event. Thank you for participating in this blog and good luck on a full visual recovery! Toni
From a January customer:
ReplyDeleteMy computer at work will not let me into the comment section of your blog. I can certainly say here (and hopefully you'll be able to transfer it) that I could not have gotten through the face positioning if I had not had your equipment. I only wish that I had rented the chair as well. I found your company to be totally supportive and very professional. Equipment was delivered and picked up exactly when you indicated. Thanks again. NEK
To Duckdown:
ReplyDeleteChoosing to go through with any type of surgery is always a matter of personal choice. While macular holes rarely cause complete blindness they can very definately cause significant visual impairment and legal blindness. For many, I dare say most, not being able to read or drive is a condition not given into without at least trying to fix the problem. Certainly most of the viewers of this blog are interested in trying to fix the problem, which is why you are not reading more comments about dealing with the disability. You can probably find more information about coping with vision loss through macular degeneration support groups. I am guessing you won't find any blogs about it because it is so very hard for victims of that disease to see a computer screen!
But let's talk about you and your particular case, bilateral macular holes. Yes, it is unusual to get a MH in both eyes, but not unheard of at all. There is no one who will argue that MH recovery is difficult, and to have gone through one without success must be extremely discouraging. You alone can decide what limitations you can live with as well as how much you can endure in an effort to retain functional vision. I would encourage you however to try to find the strength within you to give both eyes a chance. Do you think you could try to endure another two weeks of misery for the chance of good sight? You may sail through this time. Try to keep your spirits up, your figurative heart and your powerful brain hold the key to many of your physical defeats and successes! Let me know how your story goes, Duckdown.
I will be having surgery very soon. Have lots of entire cervical pain due to injuries-healed compressed vertebrae fractures--still hurt, knee pain, surgery and need more on other knee. Shoulder andarm pains, tingling in arms hands fingers, when in bed especially -old injuries and substandard medical care for most--MY question: I am obese-cannot dance or exercise anymore-and breasts bunch up and hurt if I am at foot of bed and of course back strain etc. How can i sleep with head rest at end of bed-or on bed-and prevent Pain from breasts? I am practicing and realize it will be painful unless some supoort around breasts. What do you recommend?
ReplyDeleteDear Anonymous:
ReplyDeleteWow, as if it wasn't difficult enough to do this positioning thing! There is a sternum pad that can be used with the seated support chair that fits between the breasts, and many doctors will allow you to sleep on your side(they will tell you which side depending on which eye you are having worked on) as long as you turn your head way to the side. It isn't ideal but some people just cannot, for a variety of reasons, sleep on their stomach . Does anyone out there have any ideas?
Toni
hi there
ReplyDeleteMy Mom who is almost 72 will be having the operation (gas) for a macular hole in early June. She is, understandably, very nervous. She is also the primary caregiver for my Dad.
She is wondering how long after the operation until you can exercise again - she takes private fitness training and has to come to an arrangement with the trainer for her time off. I know it will vary by person, but are we looking at months or weeks?
Also, does anyone know where we can rent these great equipment options in Canada? We think we have found a place where she can get a massage table, but I would love for to have some of the stuff I have seen in Britain and the U.S. where she could sit at a table. She has arthritis and is very worried about having to lie down for so long.
thanks in advance
Lynne
ottawa_lynne@yahoo.ca
Lynne:
ReplyDeleteHow long it will take to return to normal activities is variable. The bubble itself will last for at least a few weeks or longer, limiting things such as flying or traveling to higher elevations (the gas inside the eye can expand at high altitudes). Your mother's surgeon will be able to give you the best answer to her particular activities.
There is a company in Ontario called Labtician Ophthalmics that carries Vitrectomy Support equipment. 1-800-265-8391
Toni
i have had surgery two weeks ago and if wasn't for the massage table and the massage chair i would have not made it! i put a 19" tv under the chair and watched tv for hrs. the cahir is the life saver. bless you all, if i did it anyone can. good luck to everyone :)
ReplyDeleteWondering if you have heard of any symptoms such as
ReplyDeletetiredness or foggy head during the bubble dissipating
stage. 10 days ago, I felt great and on the mend. Then, as the bubble started to divide, I noticed feeling exhausted. I feel like I'm not myself 5 weeks after surgery!
The surgeon changed from my steroid drops to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory two days ago. I noticed a
slight improvement but still exhausted.
Ever heard of these symptoms in the late stages of bubble dissipation?
Hi, i've had the surgery for a macular hole.I had 75% filled with the bubble. The surgery is real scary knowing you have 3 instruments in your eye, one for pressure, one for extracting fluid and one for the nitrous gas bubble. Let me tell you, you see nothing and feel nothing. My eye looked solid red, but I felt no pain. I put drops 4 times a day & a shield on it at nite. I can see inside my eye and the fluid but not outside. It's been 3 weeks and I now see the bubble half way in my eye. I have a massage chair I bought from ebay for $118.00. I t was an option to change the many ways to deal with looking down. The best way I found to deal with it was buy a dvd player that can lay flat ( the size of a small laptop 9" screen - $99 at target) put it on the floor on a tray sit on the side of my bed bend over with arms on my knees and watch movie after movie and the whole first season of "24". When I was in bed, i used memory foam pillow for half of my face leaving my nose and left patched eye free for air. Stuffed foam and pillows around breast, stomach and sore places. No it's not easy, i like sleeping on my back. I'm starting to see on the top part of my eye but not sure what the outcome is yet. I hope this helps some of you to who needs some ideas. shirley
ReplyDeleteHi, I am 4 1/2 wks since vitrectomy. I went 24 hrs facedown for 11 days then 8 to 12 hrs daily to 4 to 8 hrs daily face down. I rented equipment, which I am thankful. The bed equipment, I felt I wasted money on, and couldn't use and its wasn't covered by insurance anyway. I am feeling very antsy at this point with this gas bubble, I am now at 2 hrs face down a day and exhausted very easily and need encouragement.
ReplyDeleteMy doctor has agreed to perform a vitrectomy if I so elect but I am trying to better understand the risks and recovery that I would face. I am in the unusual position of having healthy eyes with the exception that about half the vitreous layer covering the retina has detached. The retinas themselves and their blood supplies are healthy. These floaters cover large areas--occasionally my whole field of view--and move randomly across my field of view. In the day these areas look like those on TV where the broadcaster blurs out faces, T-Shirt obscenities or the like. At night while driving--especially in the rain--I can lose all detail, my vision often lights up with extreme halos and I lose sight of the road. I have already had cataract surgery but while this helped my regular vision, it has not materially reduced the effects of the floaters.
ReplyDeleteWould recovery from a vitrectomy to remove the floaters and remaining vitreous differ significantly from the recoveries described on this site? Would a gas bubble still be the final stage of this operation, or would saline be more likely to be used? Since my eyes have already shown that the retinal bond is greater than the vitreous bond and I have no other conditions am I correct to assume that my risk of retinal complications would be materially reduced? While my eyes are healthy according to my doctor, my older brother has had retinal detachment and my mother had macular degeneration in her 80's. My three other older siblings have no retinal problems. I am in exceptionally good physical health, and I suspect that the severity of detachment may relate to occasional hits in the head while playing racquetball (I wear eye protection,) and not necessarily a greater than normal propensity for this condition at my age.
I am scheduled for Victrectomy next week and scared to death after reading some of these blogs. Someone wrote that they were in the down postion 24/7 for 2 weeks and then it went to 8 - 12 hours and they 4 to 8 hrs is this normal? It also frightening to think the vision is distorted after 5 weeks. What is the average time for recovery to a normal daily routine like walking 4 miles or exercising. Any comments would be appreciated.
ReplyDeleteGinger
How can they say it is rare for someone to get macular hole in both eyes. I have had a macular hole in the right eye and about 2 years on they have told me I am getting a macular in the the left which is the good eye. Must say life is so unfair I will have to face Victrectomy at some stage otherwise no central vision. I have read many people do end up with macular hole in one eye and then they get it in the other eye so it is not that rare.
ReplyDeleteMy question is this: The bubble has diminished quite a bit, but about the size of a silver-dollar. But just within the last few minutes, I have discovered a very small bubble on the rim of the original bubble. this concerns me. I was checked on Friday, and things looked good to the doctor. But now this little knob like is hanging on the rim.
ReplyDelete