Detached Retina -- Anybody Have Experience?

[JewelFreak]

I'm certain I have one, calling an opthamologist today. Started having symptoms Saturday & looked it up today -- it described exactly what I'm seeing. Ick. 3 different surgeries were described; depends on the individual situation which the dr. would recommend. All sound no fun. At all. Has anyone had experience with this? Any info appreciated.

Thanks!!

--- Laurie

 

[Andelain]

I know nothing of detached retinas, but I'm sending dust your way that this turns out to be easily corrected.

 

[sonnyjane]

Yes and it's not good what I have to tell you. Get to a doctor as fast as you can. My mom had one and didn't make it to a doctor until day 3. They did two surgeries, but unfortunately she will never be able to see out of that eye again. The damage was just too severe. Don't waste another second!!!

 

[VRBeauty]

Ditto SonnyJane. Three of my co-workers have had detached retinas. It is very serious - one lost his sight in that eye. Get to a doctor pronto.

 

[NewEnglandLady]

My father has had several detached retinas. Get to a doc ASAP and don't do anything that would cause you to strain. No lifting, etc.

Byron (our dog) also had a detached retina.

 

[Mayk]

My daughter has coloboma and has a higher risk factor for this if she is hit in the head (why she doesn't play basketball or soccer)... she will see spots.. and it sends us running... not sure of your symptoms but I agree with the other posters.. don't mess with this one... see the doctor sooner versus later.

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

When I worked general duty ophthalmology we used to see repairs of the same. Symptoms range but most complain of "curtain" appearance (a curtain hanging down in front of their eye) or something along those lines.

I don't know your quickest route to comprehensive medical care--but to ER? I suppose one could go to an Optom--they could look then refer you onto a retinal person; but that require you an extra appt and $$. So to ER I would go--they could page the Ophthalmologist on call, and they could diagnose you.

At any rate, get thee to a medical facility! Hope it is not a detachment, that said the repair is much more sophisticated and down time is less than when I worked.

cheers--Sharon

 

[mrs jam]

My mom's retina detached while she was on a plane. Not fun. She and my dad went straight to the ER when they landed. If I remember correctly, she got some kind of band placed in her eye, and she always complained that after that surgery, she always felt a weird pressure around that eye. Her surgery was over ten years ago, however.

From what I understand, this is an emergency type of situation. You need to get to a doctor ASAP! Your vision is just too precious. Lots of good thoughts headed your way!

 

[minousbijoux]

Laurie:

I am so sorry to hear this. Dust, dust and more dust! Good for you for figuring out what it was in a timely manner.

Please keep us informed.

 

[Lady_Disdain]

Yes, get to a doctor fast. My father was suspected of having detached his retina last year (it turned out to be something else). He was told to go straight to an appointment and, in the mean time, to keep his eyes closed as much as possible and to stay as still as possible, to avoid any further damage.

Best wishes!

 

[amc80]

My mom had one. The surgery and recovery were horrible. They put an air bubble in the eye to keep something in place, and she had to be face down for something like a month. Couldn't raise her head at all. Her vision never really recovered and her eye sight from that eye was very blurry. She just recently had a permanent lens placed in there and now it's better, but still not what it was.

As others have said, get to a doctor fast...not something you want to mess with.

FYI- I get ocular migraines and the symptoms are very similar to having a detached retina.

 

[pinkjewel]

My hubby is an eye doctor. You have gotten good advice-get to an eye doctor now! Personally I wouldn't go to an ER- they really are not used to eyes and it will take longer,too. Go to a retinal specialist if you can- if not, go to your optometrist (as long as they're not a Walmart type doc). They can get you dilated and check your retina. If it's detached they'll get you into a retina specialist immediately. There are other things that mimic retinal detachments where you can get "flashes" and "floaters" such as a vitreous separation or even ocular migraines where you will get "holes" in your vision-so don't panic until you find out. The "curtain" that was mentioned would be the most telling sign if you have it coming over your eye. Good luck and please let us know what you find out!!

 

[Missy]

My hubby is an eye doctor. You have gotten good advice-get to an eye doctor now! Personally I wouldn't go to an ER- they really are not used to eyes and it will take longer,too. Go to a retinal specialist if you can- if not, go to your optometrist (as long as they're not a Walmart type doc). They can get you dilated and check your retina. If it's detached they'll get you into a retina specialist immediately. There are other things that mimic retinal detachments where you can get "flashes" and "floaters" such as a vitreous separation or even ocular migraines where you will get "holes" in your vision-so don't panic until you find out. The "curtain" that was mentioned would be the most telling sign if you have it coming over your eye. Good luck and please let us know what you find out!!

Hi Laurie- I agree with pinkjewel. Please get yourself to a retinal specialist ASAP. That's your best bet. Do NOT go to the ER. You need to be dilated and evaluated and your best bet is a doctor who specializes in the retina. Don't panic as it might not be a retinal detachment but if it is you want to be where they can repair it ASAP. As pinkjewel posted it could be a PVD (posterior retinal detachment) but whatever it is get it checked out as soon as you can. Prognosis is best the sooner you can get it treated if it is an RD. Good luck and sending healthy retina vibes your way!

 

[JewelFreak]

Great advice, everyone. I went to an opthamologist this afternoon, just got back (screen is still a little blurry from eyedrops) but here I am! It is a vitreal detachment, not the retina, thank heaven. Doesn't need treatment, though I have to have a dr. peer into my eye every year from now on to be sure it doesn't progress to retinal detachment.

Mayk, what is coloboma? Sounds like you're on constant alert, how upsetting. Hope she stays ok.

NEL -- Do they do retinal surgery on dogs? How is Byron?

AMC & Mrs. Jam -- your descriptions of the surgery are just what gave me the heeby jeebies! I looked it up this a.m. online & it did not look like any fun at all. The Harvard Med site said it's often necessary to do more than one procedure.

Thank you for the super advice & good thoughts -- awfully glad it was something not-so-awful; should make me realize not to panic so fast. Fun doctor, though.

--- Laurie

 

[sonnyjane]

Great advice, everyone. I went to an opthamologist this afternoon, just got back (screen is still a little blurry from eyedrops) but here I am! It is a vitreal detachment, not the retina, thank heaven. Doesn't need treatment, though I have to have a dr. peer into my eye every year from now on to be sure it doesn't progress to retinal detachment.

Mayk, what is coloboma? Sounds like you're on constant alert, how upsetting. Hope she stays ok.

NEL -- Do they do retinal surgery on dogs? How is Byron?

AMC & Mrs. Jam -- your descriptions of the surgery are just what gave me the heeby jeebies! I looked it up this a.m. online & it did not look like any fun at all. The Harvard Med site said it's often necessary to do more than one procedure.

Thank you for the super advice & good thoughts -- awfully glad it was something not-so-awful; should make me realize not to panic so fast. Fun doctor, though.

--- Laurie

Oh that's good news! Like I said my mom is still in the aftermath of this.. she had her first surgery around Christmas and the second a few weeks ago... I am SO glad you don't have to go through it! It was NOT fun for her!

 

[JewelFreak]

Sonnyjane, such a tough gig for your mother. I hope she improves with time, at least gets some sight back. Major sympathies to her for what she had to go through!

--- Laurie

 

[Lady_Disdain]

Great news! I am relieved to hear it.

 

[VRBeauty]

Jewelfreak - That's great news! I didn't want to further freak you out, but none of the people I know who had detached retinas had really good outcomes.

I've gone through vitreal detachment - it sure frightened me when it first happened! That was several years ago and it's pretty much settled down now, but I still get to "see stars" from time to time. I haven't had any complications from it though, and it didn't even complicate matters when I decided on lasik earlier this year.

 

[Mayk]

Oh what a relief! Good for you!

Coloboma is when the muscle (color) in a baby's doesn't fully develop inter uterine . The appearance is often called keyhole. Her pupil looks to me like paint running into the color. She has bilateral (both eyes). In most cases it will cover the optic nerve and the results are blindness. In DH we were blessed. Both went right to the optic nerve and stopped. She wears glasses but it has nothing to do with the coloboma. Hers's resulted in limited peripheral vision above her head and her eyes are sensitive to the sun because her eyes don't close down like ours to limit the light coming in. She really has gotten used to this and will only wear sunglasses every now and then. Again we were lucky her eyes are dark brown. You really have to be close to her to see them. I've seen them in blue eyes and they are obvious. She was diagnosed at around six weeks.

Apologies for errors...I'm on my iPad and too tired to proof!

 

[sonnyjane]

Oh what a relief! Good for you!

Coloboma is when the muscle (color) in a baby's doesn't fully develop inter uterine . The appearance is often called keyhole. Her pupil looks to me like paint running into the color. She has bilateral (both eyes). In most cases it will cover the optic nerve and the results are blindness. In DH we were blessed. Both went right to the optic nerve and stopped. She wears glasses but it has nothing to do with the coloboma. Hers's resulted in limited peripheral vision above her head and her eyes are sensitive to the sun because her eyes don't close down like ours to limit the light coming in. She really has gotten used to this and will only wear sunglasses every now and then. Again we were lucky her eyes are dark brown. You really have to be close to her to see them. I've seen them in blue eyes and they are obvious. She was diagnosed at around six weeks.

Apologies for errors...I'm on my iPad and too tired to proof!

OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!! I did a Google Image search and my sister HAS this! Her's is really minor compared to some of the pictures I saw (this one is probably closest http://www.google.com/imgres?q=Coloboma&um=1&hl=en&client=firefox-a&sa=N&rls=org.mozilla:en-USfficial&biw=1366&bih=572&tbm=isch&tbnid=_yTgCQNAKeM0jM:&imgrefurl=http://www.umm.edu/imagepages/8750.htm&docid=xa1s2tL9KRJTmM&imgurl=http://www.umm.edu/graphics/images/en/8750.jpg&w=400&h=320&ei=tVnyT7GMFcO-2gWhkO2lAg&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=325&sig=109121889201083760246&page=1&tbnh=152&tbnw=190&start=0&ndsp=11&ved=1t:429,r:7,s:0,i:163&tx=91&ty=85) but I didn't know it was anything weird! Nobody ever said anything!

 

[Dandi]

Whew jewelfreak, what a relief! We do a fair few retinal detachment repairs (vitrectomies) at work, and they can take an hour or two but are pretty straightforward. Yay that you don't have one!

 

[Missy]

Great news Laurie! A PVD is common and not to worry.
Is it a complete detachment of the posterior vitreous? If it is no worries and just be tuned to any changes in symptoms and have regular dilated evals and you will be fine.

 

[Mayk]

Oh what a relief! Good for you!

Coloboma is when the muscle (color) in a baby's doesn't fully develop inter uterine . The appearance is often called keyhole. Her pupil looks to me like paint running into the color. She has bilateral (both eyes). In most cases it will cover the optic nerve and the results are blindness. In DH we were blessed. Both went right to the optic nerve and stopped. She wears glasses but it has nothing to do with the coloboma. Hers's resulted in limited peripheral vision above her head and her eyes are sensitive to the sun because her eyes don't close down like ours to limit the light coming in. She really has gotten used to this and will only wear sunglasses every now and then. Again we were lucky her eyes are dark brown. You really have to be close to her to see them. I've seen them in blue eyes and they are obvious. She was diagnosed at around six weeks.

Apologies for errors...I'm on my iPad and too tired to proof!

OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!! I did a Google Image search and my sister HAS this! Her's is really minor compared to some of the pictures I saw (this one is probably closest http://www.google.com/imgres?q=Coloboma&um=1&hl=en&client=firefox-a&sa=N&rls=org.mozilla:en-USfficial&biw=1366&bih=572&tbm=isch&tbnid=_yTgCQNAKeM0jM:&imgrefurl=http://www.umm.edu/imagepages/8750.htm&docid=xa1s2tL9KRJTmM&imgurl=http://www.umm.edu/graphics/images/en/8750.jpg&w=400&h=320&ei=tVnyT7GMFcO-2gWhkO2lAg&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=325&sig=109121889201083760246&page=1&tbnh=152&tbnw=190&start=0&ndsp=11&ved=1t:429,r:7,s:0,i:163&tx=91&ty=85) but I didn't know it was anything weird! Nobody ever said anything!

OMG...and no one has ever said anything to her? Does she notice a difference in her vision...

Trying to post a picture of DD (not DH as referenced above... very tired last night)... not sure you will be able to see... because like I said her eyes are dark brown..

 

[JewelFreak]

Yow, Mayk, how fortunate that DD's vision is ok. I've never heard of coloboma before -- you taught me something new. It isn't visible to me in your pic of her & it's terrific she does well with it. Sonnyjane, amazing! I guess it hasn't had a bad effect on your sister's vision either -- yay!! Never know what you'll learn on PS, huh? Always something new!

--- Laurie

 

[sonnyjane]

Oh what a relief! Good for you!

Coloboma is when the muscle (color) in a baby's doesn't fully develop inter uterine . The appearance is often called keyhole. Her pupil looks to me like paint running into the color. She has bilateral (both eyes). In most cases it will cover the optic nerve and the results are blindness. In DH we were blessed. Both went right to the optic nerve and stopped. She wears glasses but it has nothing to do with the coloboma. Hers's resulted in limited peripheral vision above her head and her eyes are sensitive to the sun because her eyes don't close down like ours to limit the light coming in. She really has gotten used to this and will only wear sunglasses every now and then. Again we were lucky her eyes are dark brown. You really have to be close to her to see them. I've seen them in blue eyes and they are obvious. She was diagnosed at around six weeks.

Apologies for errors...I'm on my iPad and too tired to proof!

OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!! I did a Google Image search and my sister HAS this! Her's is really minor compared to some of the pictures I saw (this one is probably closest http://www.google.com/imgres?q=Coloboma&um=1&hl=en&client=firefox-a&sa=N&rls=org.mozilla:en-USfficial&biw=1366&bih=572&tbm=isch&tbnid=_yTgCQNAKeM0jM:&imgrefurl=http://www.umm.edu/imagepages/8750.htm&docid=xa1s2tL9KRJTmM&imgurl=http://www.umm.edu/graphics/images/en/8750.jpg&w=400&h=320&ei=tVnyT7GMFcO-2gWhkO2lAg&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=325&sig=109121889201083760246&page=1&tbnh=152&tbnw=190&start=0&ndsp=11&ved=1t:429,r:7,s:0,i:163&tx=91&ty=85) but I didn't know it was anything weird! Nobody ever said anything!

OMG...and no one has ever said anything to her? Does she notice a difference in her vision...

Trying to post a picture of DD (not DH as referenced above... very tired last night)... not sure you will be able to see... because like I said her eyes are dark brown..

Yeah my sister's is not as pronounced as your daughter's. Hers is more like the link I posted with just an extra black line coming into her iris. I'm going to tell my mom today. My sister has always shown it off as a weird trait!