For the last two years my mom has been through several procedures to restore her sight. Started with cataract and glaucoma surgery (Aug ’08), YAG laser capsulotomy her POC treatment (May ’09), Lucentis Injection for AMD treatment (Sept ’09), and Intravitreal triamcinolone (IVT) injection for her CME treatment (Jan ’10). All of the procedures were done on one eye only, her left eye.
Her right eye, on the other hand, was already damage. The cloudy cornea had caused blindness and the only available treatment for her was a corneal transplant. The procedure includes removing the cloudy cornea and replacing it with a clear cornea donated through an eye bank. And because of the complexity of this procedure, her doctors advised us to focus on her left eye first before proceed to her right eye.
Until last week when she had her regular checkup, the option of corneal transplant was discussed again and yesterday we were informed that an eye donation was available for her. The doctor then asked if my mom wanted to proceed with the transplantation. She agreed, so yesterday evening she had a complete examination prior the surgery. She had an ultrasound scan on her right eye, hematology test and EKG monitor. We went home late last night.
Her ophthalmologist said she would perform corneal transplant and cataract surgery at the same time on my mom’s right eye. The surgery date was set this Saturday (March 12th) and she had to be there at 8AM. I already signed the consent form. Unlike previous procedures, this time my mom would be given a general anesthesia and required to stay at the hospital after the surgery so I booked a room for her too.
The doctor also informed us about the risk of this procedure such as rejection of the new cornea and infection, but she said they were treatable. She would also look at my mom’s hematology test result (which will be out later today) before performing the surgery. My mom’s BP readings was high last night 200/100 mm Hg, so the internist who ran EKG test prescribed her with HBP medicine.
I have a mixed feeling right now. I’m happy that my mom has a chance to gain her right eye vision back, but at the same time can’t help being worried about the surgery. I’m also blank about this corneal transplant thing. Does anyone know about the procedure? Please keep us in your prayer and may God bless all eye donors wherever you are.
i hope your mother will have a successful operation and i’ll be praying for her.
joy´s last blog ..It Rained !
Thank you, we need that
Corneal transplants are the most common of any transplant. Over 40,000 of them occur in the USA a year. It is the most successful of all transplants with a very low rate of rejection. Just as you were told, if there are signs of rejection that can be treated and hopefully taken care of. Visit http://www.restoresight.org for more information. Hope she does well.
Best wishes,
Dave
Thanks for the info Dave, I will check the website. I was told about the low rate of rejection too, but somehow the word “transplant” still sounds scary to me. Hopefully everything will go fine.
Goodluck to the operation, I will pray for that. How old is she now? Hope she can recover soon.
Silvergirl´s last blog ..Quotes for Today!
Thank you for the support. She’ll be 72 next week, so it’s like an early birthday present for her.
My boss had a corneal transplant 10 years ago. He was about 5o. A few years later he had to have another surgery to fix something that went wrong but he’s doing well now. He had it at Johns Hopkins.
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[...] I’d like to say thank you to everyone who responded to my previous post about my mom’s corneal transplant. It’s nice to read all your comments there. The surgery itself went smoothly last [...]
I had vision restored through a corneal transplant. If you would like to check out my blog it is third-ear-eleventh-finger dot blogspot dot com It is about the joys and challenges that go with losing vision and then having it restored. Glad to hear the surgery went well. I hope she has an easy time of it with the recovery!
Hannorah´s last blog ..I Love My Donor
I have had a corneal transplant after a period of vision loss and blistering corneas. Mine was caused by a genetic disorder called Fuchs’ Corneal Dystrophy which I inherited from my mother and grandmother. I have a blog about the gift and the adventure of losing my vision and then having it restored. Vision loss can be so lonely even when you have people who love you deeply. It is isolating, confusing. It is a joy to communicate with people who experience something similar.
Hannorah´s last blog ..The Space Between Change
Thank you for sharing, I’m glad you found me. You’re right, it’s nice to hear from people who share the same experience. I’ll check your blog soon.
Btw, sorry it took time for your comments to show up. Askimet accidentally moved them under spam, maybe because you put a link inside it. I didn’t know that until I checked my unpublished comments just now. I had to remove the link, but don’t worry it still show on commentluv
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Being an organ and tissue donor is so important. Prayers and well wishes for your mom…..
Hello,
I’m looking for a corneal transplant doctor in the Tennessee, Alabama, Kentucky area. Can someone help?
Thanks,
Gerry Schmidt
Hi,
I’m so sorry I live in Indonesia and don’t have information about ophthalmologist in America.
Maybe you can ask Hanorah (the previous commenter) at http://third-ear-eleventh-finger.blogspot.com/. She’s from US and a recipient too, maybe she can help.
Or check the websites that Dave gave me:
http://www.restoresight.org/ and http://www.illinoiseyebank.org/index.htm
Hope you can find what you’re looking for