Eye surgery was a failure......

jujube

jujube

SF VIP
Location
I think I'm in Florida, but I'm not sure any more.
I had my one-month followup today with the retina surgeon and, as I suspected, the surgery was a complete failure. In fact, I think it's worse. Bummer. Well, I went into it knowing that it might not do any good. I just hoped I'd fall in the percentage of patients the procedure does help.

He wants to try another surgery procedure. I have to wait until late April because I have to be in Seattle at least two weeks for the trial. I have the surgery scheduled for late April but I'm wavering on having it at all.

On the one hand, I think I'm going to jump off a cliff if I have to put up with the condition the way it is. On the other hand, there will be no flying for 2-3 months and no driving for maybe a month or more if I do have the second surgery. And, of course, no guarantee that surgery will help either.

Ah, the joys of aging......
 

Jujube, I am sorry to hear this, going through all the anticipation of hoping for a good outcome only to have that major disappointment.

Has the doctor given you any indication of the percentage odds for success as this might help you to make a decision.
 
You are such a fabulously funny lady, I am so sorry to learn this, I wasn't aware of it before. May I ask what the problem is with your retina? I have an eye doc in the family. Also, my mother had two detached retinas after her cataract surgeries and I will not forget how she described her symptoms. Scary.
 
jujube...my mother became legally blind when she was 56, and moved in with us. She had a bad couple years "mentally", but after that, had a wonderful "second act" traveling for our company all over the country and overseas.

I've often rocked in the swing on the back deck thinking about the silver linings we seem to find when trauma knocks on our doors.
You'd have been hard pressed to find a more independent person than my mom. The washer and dryer still have light blue tape on the "on an off" buttons to show her where to turn it on and off. For a year after she passed away (she lived with us for 26 years), I never moved anything in the kitchen. Hey, keep on keeping on!
 
jujube said:
I had my one-month followup today with the retina surgeon and, as I suspected, the surgery was a complete failure. In fact, I think it's worse. Bummer. Well, I went into it knowing that it might not do any good. I just hoped I'd fall in the percentage of patients the procedure does help.

He wants to try another surgery procedure. I have to wait until late April because I have to be in Seattle at least two weeks for the trial. I have the surgery scheduled for late April but I'm wavering on having it at all.

On the one hand, I think I'm going to jump off a cliff if I have to put up with the condition the way it is. On the other hand, there will be no flying for 2-3 months and no driving for maybe a month or more if I do have the second surgery. And, of course, no guarantee that surgery will help either.

Ah, the joys of aging......
Click to expand...
Sorry about the bad news. I always say, Getting old ain't for the sissies"
 
@jujube
I am so sorry that the surgery was not a successful improvement. I would have tried it, as you did, and hoped to be one of the ones it worked for.

Your sense of humor is so welcome and good. I find mine (humor) has gotten me through ….
(just barely but that's enough....., barely... :rolleyes: )
 
JJ no one can slam a phrase, take a passage turn it upside down, giving
it a different meaning. You one of those word whackers, with responses that are both humorous and insightful
we need your eyeballs, both of them.

Question: had cataract surgery a year ago, eyes water 24 hrs a day,
lower eyelids are 'loose,' hang down 1/8-1/4 inch, unsightly.

keep going to original ophthalmologist , who has excellent reputation.
You have any knowledge of 'hanging lower eyelids' due to cataract surgery?
 
Last edited:
jujube said:
Oh, I still have the one good eye, thank goodness. I shouldn't be complaining so much. But as they say: "The more you complain, the longer God lets you live...…"

Thanks for the kind words, all.
Click to expand...
I hear you!
I have one good eye and one "so-so" eye, but if I had let them operate, I might be in worse shape.

My cataract surgery worked like a champ for my right eye, but when the left was done I developed a retina problem which reduced my vision in that eye to "crap."

The retina specialist advised that he could operate and that I had a 70% probability of seeing an improvement or staying the same. I had a 30% probability that it would be worse or that I could completely lose that eye. My vision in that eye was down to about 20/70 so it didn't contribute much. I thought about it for over a year and was going to go forward with the operation.

But when I went in for my regular exam to see in the lens for my right needed to be updated, the young lady doing the testing tried various combinations for my left eye and found one that brought my vision in the eye up to about 20/30 with some minor distortion.

That was good enough for me and I was so happy that I could scarcely contain myself. I cancelled that pending surgery and am learning to live with vision in that eye that is a bit less that I would like. Sometimes I use a black patch and read with just one eye since the other gives me a slightly distorted view.

You have my sympathy as this situation is irritating.

... and wearing a black patch makes me look like a Pirate.
 
I'm so sorry to hear this. I guess for me it would depend how bad your sight is in the bad eye. If it is next to nothing I would try again. If I still had quite a bit of vision left now I would have to think long and hard on it. Maybe a second opinion?
 
jerry old said:
Question: had cataract surgery a year ago, eyes water 24 hrs a day,
lower eyelids are 'loose,' hang down 1/8-1/4 inch, unsightly.

keep going to original entomologist, who has excellent reputation.
You have any knowledge of 'hanging lower eyelids' due to cataract surgery?
Click to expand...

Someone else on here mentioned having droopy eyelids after cataract surgery, but I can't remember who. Maybe they had to "clamp" your eyelids apart for some reason and that damaged them? I can't think of a reason for cataract surgery to make your eyes water a year later. Allergies to eye drops?
 
No, I think the doc screwed up, I seeking another ophthalmologist , but there thick as thieves, plus there very difficult to get do. There all in
dallas and it is very difficult to drive : x-ways and in large cities streets wotj heavy traffic.
JJ. you are not cracking phrase as you've done before, I suppose you have other concerns, very important concerns.
 
Last edited:
jerry old said:
JJ no one can slam a phrase, take a passage turn it upside down, giving
it a different meaning. You one of those word whackers, with responses that are both humorous and insightful
we need your eyeballs, both of them.

Question: had cataract surgery a year ago, eyes water 24 hrs a day,
lower eyelids are 'loose,' hang down 1/8-1/4 inch, unsightly.

keep going to original ophthalmologist , who has excellent reputation.
You have any knowledge of 'hanging lower eyelids' due to cataract surgery?
Click to expand...
Have a friend's husband who is 90 and had an operation to take care of his drooping eye lids. Seemed to do the job...would talk to your doc about it if it's bothering you.
 
Liberty
Thanks, what's peeling my taters is they eyelids were fine before the cataract surgery. The doc has stated, "We can fix those with surgery."
Hey! they were fine before you started cutting, who is responsible?
He gave me the four dollar shuffle," One can never tell exactly the aspects of post operative surgery. If, I had the money, I'd contact an attorney.
 
jerry old said:
Liberty
Thanks, what's peeling my taters is they eyelids were fine before the cataract surgery. The doc has stated, "We can fix those with surgery."
Hey! they were fine before you started cutting, who is responsible?
He gave me the four dollar shuffle," One can never tell exactly the aspects of post operative surgery. If, I had the money, I'd contact an attorney.
Click to expand...
Well, from what I know, it does happen but goes away within 6 months for most folks. I've read the docs don't know causes it. When did you have the surgery?

http://health.heraldtribune.com/2016/01/04/drooping-eyelid-common-after-cataract-surgery-2/
 
Oh, excuse me...I see from a former post you had the surgery a year ago. Time to talk to the doc, huh.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top