I saw the eye doctor today to discuss some corrective measures for my ongoing eye issue. I have what they call map-dot-fingerprint corneal dystrophy. (Well that's a mouthful isn't it!)
It started as a scratchy right eye which I attributed to being dry or piece of cat hair in it. This was January 1st last year. The next day the right eye was burning and painful, which sent me in emergency to my eye doctor who saw me just as the office was closing.
The issue at the time was a small corneal ulceration which required some antibiotic drops and a contact lens, which is like a bandage for the eyeball. It worked and all was happy for about 9 months. Then in August I had a flare up which sent me to the eye doctor again. This time I was told I have some corneal erosion and need to use eye drops 6-8 times per day, plus some antibiotic drops again. That went on for about a month and everything was fine again, but then it flared up again and was worse. This time I was in agony, which preempted a piano lesson and I ended up canceling the lesson and went to the eye doctor again in emergency.
I could get about two to three weeks before an additional flare up hits. The treatment has been the same with drops and a contact lens. More recently, I've had my eyelid stick and catch on my eyeball! That's like peeling a chapped lip, but it's your eyeball instead. On the pain scale, this is about 20! The pain lasts a day then everything goes back to normal. The treatment has been the same, but with some steroids added.
Then I saw the doctor again today. We've discussed the situation, which has only gotten worse over the year and the conclusion is there's a few things going that will need surgery.
The surgery has been scheduled for March 23rd when I will have my right eye peeled, sanded with a diamond burr bit, and allowed to grow its cornea cells back. The surgery has an 80% success rate, which is good but with my other conditions too, this may not be as good. If this doesn't work, I will need recurring surgery every few months.
In the meantime, sadly my Trainzing, piano playing, and other computer stuff has been limited because keeping my eyes focused for too long, and not blinking as I should, causes the condition to become worse. I also noticed too before flare ups that I'm sensitive to bright lights, have blurred vision, have reduced vision acuity - everything seems way too small like it's the size of ants, and I get awful headaches from it.
The issue at the time was a small corneal ulceration which required some antibiotic drops and a contact lens, which is like a bandage for the eyeball. It worked and all was happy for about 9 months. Then in August I had a flare up which sent me to the eye doctor again. This time I was told I have some corneal erosion and need to use eye drops 6-8 times per day, plus some antibiotic drops again. That went on for about a month and everything was fine again, but then it flared up again and was worse. This time I was in agony, which preempted a piano lesson and I ended up canceling the lesson and went to the eye doctor again in emergency.
I could get about two to three weeks before an additional flare up hits. The treatment has been the same with drops and a contact lens. More recently, I've had my eyelid stick and catch on my eyeball! That's like peeling a chapped lip, but it's your eyeball instead. On the pain scale, this is about 20! The pain lasts a day then everything goes back to normal. The treatment has been the same, but with some steroids added.
Then I saw the doctor again today. We've discussed the situation, which has only gotten worse over the year and the conclusion is there's a few things going that will need surgery.
The surgery has been scheduled for March 23rd when I will have my right eye peeled, sanded with a diamond burr bit, and allowed to grow its cornea cells back. The surgery has an 80% success rate, which is good but with my other conditions too, this may not be as good. If this doesn't work, I will need recurring surgery every few months.
In the meantime, sadly my Trainzing, piano playing, and other computer stuff has been limited because keeping my eyes focused for too long, and not blinking as I should, causes the condition to become worse. I also noticed too before flare ups that I'm sensitive to bright lights, have blurred vision, have reduced vision acuity - everything seems way too small like it's the size of ants, and I get awful headaches from it.
