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Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,258
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: Have you been evaluated by a Retina Specialist?

@haddon9

 

Boy, you really went through the wringer with your eye emergency!  Hope you affected eye is faring well now and was well attended to.

 

***

 

We were snowed in this winter on 2 occasions and we just hoped that neither of us had a medical emergency, though the ambulances were getting through.  It was one of those cases of snow on ice on snow, freezing rain, more snow more ice storms - it just kept on.  Fortunately, everyone in close proximity to us fared well.

Frequent Contributor
Posts: 81
Registered: ‎04-24-2015

Re: Have you been evaluated by a Retina Specialist?

My retina specialist saved my vision.  Two years ago, I had a retinal tear in my right eye.  My regular ophthalmologist did some blazer and a gas bubble, but those procedures did not work.  A few days later, when he finally referred me to a specialist, I was completely blind in my right eye.  The macular was detracted.  I was scared to death.  I was only 51.  

Anyway, my retinal surgery was a huge success.  He did a vitrectomy, removing the fluid, and a sacral buckle and gas bubble.  The recovery was horrible.  I had to lie face down for a full week.  But I can see!!!!  The gas bubble caused a cataract, so I had that surgery a few months later. 

After everything with my right eye, the specialist decided to later the left eye to try to prevent a detachment.  And that worked until last month.  The retinal started to tear.  So the Dr did more blazer, and I have to see he frequently.  Probably will not need more retina surgery.

The work that these specialists do is amazing.  He restored my vision, and I am eternally grateful.  

My appointments do not take two hours.  In fact, actually seeing the Dr is very short.  The waiting time can be long because my dr has lots and lots of patients. The eye exam is a bit more intense and they take pictures of the retina with a special machine.  Lots of looking at bright lights and looking up and down and all around.

Don't be scared.  I am sure you will have a good outcome.  Don't be too upset with your regular Dr. Retinal surgery is a huge deal, and the accepted approach is to try the conservative methods first.  I wish you well.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 8,583
Registered: ‎06-25-2012

Re: Have you been evaluated by a Retina Specialist?

Being a type 1 diabetic I've been seeing my retina specialist for years and years. He's a magician! I moved and still would travel 4 hours just for his appointments. I hated to leave him! Funny thing, I asked him, last time I saw him (I see him every 6 months) if he knew any retina specialists up where I live now? Lo and behold he has a friend, that he practiced with, that is in a town nearby! I'm so darn happy! My appointments are always about an hour long. They examine my eyes, put drops in to dialate, I then get photos taken, wait awhile for drops to take effect, then the doctor does a full exam. Good luck to you.

"Pure Michigan"
Honored Contributor
Posts: 12,846
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Have you been evaluated by a Retina Specialist?


@sfnative wrote:

@haddon9

 

Boy, you really went through the wringer with your eye emergency!  Hope you affected eye is faring well now and was well attended to.

 

***

 

We were snowed in this winter on 2 occasions and we just hoped that neither of us had a medical emergency, though the ambulances were getting through.  It was one of those cases of snow on ice on snow, freezing rain, more snow more ice storms - it just kept on.  Fortunately, everyone in close proximity to us fared well.


Yes it was really very scary!  I just thanked G-d that it turned out to not be a detached retina!  

 

It's funny, I've lived in the northeast all of my life and never really thought about a possible medical emergency during heavy snow.  If I were having a heart attack I would have been taken care of at my local hospitals (since at that point I was able to get to them since the blizzard was just beginning) but with an eye emergency you need that specialist that tends to be at a special  location.

 

So now I have to wonder....what happens if one goes on vacation?!! It seems that having retina problems are not as uncommon as I was led to believe before my incident.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 18,612
Registered: ‎10-25-2010

Re: Have you been evaluated by a Retina Specialist?


@sfnative wrote:

@Carmie wrote:

I see a retinal specialist.  A few years ago, my eye doctor discovered something about my right eye that she wasn't happy about and sent me to a specialist.

 

i had a horseshoe tear on my retina.  The retinal specialist fixed it ASAP before it got worse.  I go every year for a check up to make sure everything is ok.  I was also told that my left retina could and probably would tear someday.

 

The doctor said to call right away if I had any symptoms of a retina tear.  I had no symptoms the first time with my right eye.  

 

Your eyes are nothing to fool around with.  If you have a retinal tear it can be repaired if treated right away.

 

when I go for the appointment, my eyes are dilated.  I get a regular eyes exam ( reading the chart). Then I look into an eye machine that takes pictures.  The pics are on the monitor when the doctor comes in to actually examine me.  He looks through a series of scopes and pushes a metal bar with a ball on the end to kinda pop my eye out of the socket a tiny bit.  No pain.

 

He tells  me his findings.  I takes about two hours in total... a lot of sitting around  and waiting too,


@Carmie

 

Thank you for sharing your experience.  I'm concerned about imaging the retinal tear in my right eye, because it's waaaaay over as far right as you can get.  Really hoping he can get a photo of it, not just view it through a magnifier like my ophthalmologist.  And, really don't know if he can repair it, as this occurred 6 months ago.  I did see my eye doc at the time, but the referral was just made.  Will have to wait and see.


My tear is really far right too.  My eye doctor just happened to notice something that didn't look right to her.  The specialist had no problem seeing it, photographing it and repairing it.  I have no idea how long it was torn... I had no symptoms at all.  I got my eyes examined every two years, so it could have been torn for a while.

 

Wishing you the best of health and luck.

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,258
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: Have you been evaluated by a Retina Specialist?

@Dash

 

Thank you, Dash, for sharing your experience.  I'm so very glad that you were able to have the sight restored in your eye!!!  All of the responses have been a confidence booster, especially since my tear occurred 6 months ago.

 

As a side bar, I went blind in both eyes for 30 minutes while driving 9 years ago.  So many things were going through my head at the time like "Don't crash!"  As luck would have it, though, it was a precursor to a bad migraine and resolved in half an hour. 

 

I can't imagine losing sight in one eye and thinking it would never come back, only to have medical technology and a specialist bring back ones sight!  I'm really happy for you!

Honored Contributor
Posts: 33,580
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: Have you been evaluated by a Retina Specialist?

I was seen by a Retina Specialist a few years ago after being examed by my regular opthamalogist.  He thought my retina was starting to detach.

 

I was sent to a specialist for the exam and it only lasted about 30 minutes but I'm not going to lie.  It was very uncomfortable.  Thank goodness, there was no issue. 

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,258
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: Have you been evaluated by a Retina Specialist?

@Carmie

 

Carmie,

 

Thank you so much for coming back to tell me that your tear was way over in the "corner," too, and was able to be repaired.  My affected eye flashes and I get painful pinches in that eye.  Now I can't wait to see the Retinal Specialist, with all of this new information on board. 

 

I have so much experience in Ortho, but not much in Ophthalmologisty.  When our Ophthalmologist Residents came down to train, most of it was either learning to stitch using 8-0 or 9-0  suture or for a course in advanced anatomy of the anterior head.

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,258
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: Have you been evaluated by a Retina Specialist?

@haddon9

 

If I were traveling and staying in a hotel, as happened to us in Salzburg, Austria, I would ask for the "House Physician."  (US or Foreign) The person could then refer you to a specialist.

 

Otherwise, I would call my Blue X/Blue Shield 800#, tell them where I am, what kind of doc I need and get physician names, as we have a PPO plan with them.

 

Just a thought or two.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 30,918
Registered: ‎05-10-2010

Re: Have you been evaluated by a Retina Specialist?

I've been seeing a retina specialist twice a year for the past 10 or 12 years.  I have tear in the retina of my left eye and the specialist follows it carefully.  Thankfully, it hasn't changed in all this time and the doc said that after this visit, I only have to see him every 9 months because it's stable and not likely to get any worse.  My visit isn't any different than any other opthalmologist visit.  He dilates my eyes and and uses the instruments.  No big deal.  Perhaps you should have been referred to the specialist when the problem was first discovered.  That's the way it was with me and I have never had any symptoms.