An Eye-Opening Experience

Tuesday morning, April 7, at two-thirty in the morning, I got up to go to the bathroom. I made my way in the dark with the aid of the dim light coming through the windows. I immediately noticed that something was wrong with my vision. There was a dark area in the visual field of my right eye. When I turned on the bathroom light, it looked like a dark curtain was hanging across the upper left corner of my personal window. I had talked to enough people suffering eye problems to realize that something must be wrong with my retina, the little screen on the back wall of the eye that receives images.

I first thought I should go to the emergency room. Then I decided to call my internist for advice. He suggested I see an ophthalmologist first thing in the morning, since the ER would have to call one and it would probably be several hours before I would be seen.

My next step was to boot up the computer and consult the internet. I confirmed my initial diagnosis of a detached retina. The indications were pretty clear, including the fact that I had done a lot of heavy lifting, moving boxes of books during the previous day. I also realized I had had two symptoms of retina trouble I had not recognized. For a couple of weeks I had noticed a prominent speck floating in my eye. I thought floaters were harmless distractions and ignored it. In fact, a new, dark floater can be an early sign of detachment. I had also had a little blurring of vision in my right eye for two days, but thought it was watering of the eye due to some irritation or allergy and did not consider it serious. It was actually another sign of a retina problem. The heavy lifting just brought the problem to a head.

Retinal detachment occurs when the vitreous substance that fills the eye shrinks and pulls away from the retina. This is normal with aging, but in some cases the vitreous adheres to the retina, pulling it loose. The retina then tears, and the vitreous fluid seeps behind and pulls the retina loose. Unless this is repaired quickly, it will cause permanent loss of sight.

I did not have an ophthalmologist, having relied on an optometrist for my glasses. I did, however, know a church member, Dale Pilkinton, who is one of the leading eye surgeons in Nashville. I called Dale at seven-thirty and was lucky enough to catch him just leaving the house. He said it sounded like a detached retina and told me to come to his office at eight-thirty. He examined my eyes and said I had a very large tear and detachment that would require surgery. He specializes in the front of the eye, cornea and lens, so he called a friend in the building who specializes in the back of the eye, retina and vitreous. Dr. Trent Wallace saw me immediately and scheduled surgery for Thursday, two days away. He also said the tear was large, unusually placed, and would require a pretty serious operation to repair.

I went home to wait and get ready. I applied for an extension for the tax return I was working on, paid my bills, and showed up at Baptist Hospital on Thursday afternoon. I was prepped and anesthetized and didn’t know a thing for several hours. They started with local anesthetic and light sleep but had to resort to a general anesthetic before it was over.

Dr. Wallace made two small incisions in my eye, inserted his instruments, and removed the vitreous. He used a laser to tack down the retina and injected silicone oil to press against it, keep it dry, and hold it in place. We had thought he would use a gas bubble, but the location of the tear called for a different approach. With the oil I did not have to maintain a prolonged face down position, but I did have to do that for periods during the first four days. A gas bubble would have dissipated in a few weeks, but the oil stays in for two months and will have to be surgically removed in June. Until then, my vision in that eye will be blurry. Dr. Wallace also placed a scleral buckle on the outside of the eye. This is a strip of silicone that is attached to the eyeball with stitches. It will be permanent providing a firm surface to hold the retina.

I went home that evening with four kinds of drops for my eye and pills for pain. Dr. Wallace said the procedure went very well, and follow-up exams confirmed that we have a good result. He does not guarantee perfect vision, but thinks it will be good. I will have to get new glasses to compensate for changes in the eye. I had some dull pain for about three weeks, and took a little Percoset and a lot of Tylenol, but it wasn’t too bad, and I now have no pain except for occasional headaches from the blurred vision. The doctor limited my physical activity for a couple of weeks but then released me to do whatever I need to do. There is some chance of detachment in the future, but we will keep a close watch on both eyes. I also have a slight cataract that will be made worse by the silicone. The doctor says that operation will be easy compared to the first one.

Any significant health problem is a crisis that produces many results. You suddenly appreciate the good health, in my case, the good vision, you had taken for granted. You re-evaluate the normal activities that have been interrupted. You realize how much you depend on other people: professional health care providers, family, friends, ministers, fellow church members. You experience your adult children as people who help you rather than people you help. You are forced to take a Sabbath break from regular activities and you have a lot of time to rest, think, and pray. You become frustrated by your limits and by the interruption of normal life. You deal with pain and learn some of its many lessons. You contemplate your future as an aging person, and ultimately as a dying person. You look to God for strength, for healing, and for hope. For all these things, I am grateful. It has been an eye-opening experience.