Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

I just did it... superficial keratectomy

Collapse
This topic is closed.
X
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • I just did it... superficial keratectomy

    Back in March, I had my first erosion... I thought it was something in my eye at first... Not knowing any better, I went to an Optometrist, who told me "yup, it's scratched, give it a few days"

    When it happened a second time, I was annoyed, still not thinking it was the eye itself, I adjusted air vents and hoped it would go away... Needless to say it didn't. It got worse.

    I ran the gamut with several doctors. For a while it was thought to be allergies, but I was getting them with and without allergy meds. I even kicked the cats out of the bedroom, which they have yet to forgive me for.

    My symptoms are a little odd in that my eyes only seem to start getting dry in the evenings, and then really dry when I sleep. During the day, they are perfectly moist, regardless of whether I am home or at work.

    One of the Ophthalmologists referred me to a cornea specialist. He agreed that I was getting erosions, but wanted to have me try Muro 128 ointment for a while. I did, and it helped, but the erosions still came. About a month ago, I had them so bad in both eyes one night, I had to stay home because I could not see to drive to work. I managed to get to the doctor that day, and he made an appointment for the superficial keratectomy for my left eye, which had been seeing double ever since that really bad night a month ago.

    The appointment was last Thursday, and I was expecting an unpleasant experience. It was anything but! He put in some drops, and had me wait a few minutes. I couldn't feel a thing when he started moving around my eye with his instruments. It was over in about 5 or 10 minutes, and after a few more drops to wash the eye, my vision was crystal clear in that eye. He put a contact bandage on, which I think he's going to remove this coming Thursday, which will be one week. He prescribed some pain pills, which I really needed by that evening, and the next day the pain got pretty bad. My eye lids were also very swollen until this morning. Today, is Saturday, and other than some minor discomfort from the contact bandage, the eye feels pretty good. He told me to expect cloudy / blurry vision in that eye as the surface heals for a few days. I also have some antibiotic drops to use three times a day.

    He told me right after the procedure that the cells were literally flaking off, and there was no doubt that the procedure was necessary. I am going to play it by ear for the right eye, but am assuming it will eventually need to be done in that eye also. Both eyes have been bad at times leading up to this. He told me there is a very good chance the erosions will stop in the left eye once it's fully healed.

    I will keep you all posted.

  • #2
    Gard, I had this very thing done to my left eye about 2 weeks ago. I've gone through wearing the bandage lens and several drops 4 x day. This corneal scraping is called debridement, also. They keep coming up with new names for everything.

    I am using Pred Forte and Acular LS twice a day each for 30 days following the removal of the bandage lens. I've not posted much since the scraping. I have about two more weeks to finish the 30 days and so far I'm not impressed or encouraged. My situation could change though and I'm crossing my fingers.

    I do wish you well--and fully expect your experience to top mine. I won't detail my stuff more, but I'll bet you a dollar you'll do just fine. Let us know. I hijacked your post, sorry, to write about my debridement. I was so surprised to see a post about this procedure!! Lucy
    Don't trust any refractive surgeon with YOUR eyes.

    The Dry Eye Queen

    Comment


    • #3
      Keep posting

      Hi, Gard & Lucy.

      Thanks very much for posting your experiences with epithelial debridement. I am reading your posts with great interest. Although I would be very happy if I am able to control my erosions with drops and vigilance, I also want to be informed of what kinds of mechanical options work if ever I opt for them. I don't think that doctors have good information about long-term results from these procedures, because they rely on whether or not the patient comes back to them, which may not happen due to a change of doctor or a move or both and not always because of success. Studies I have read follow people for only as far as 18 months.

      Gard, were you diagnosed with anterior basement membrane dystrophy (a.k.a. Cogan's Map Dot Fingerprint Dystrophy or epithelial basement membrane dystrophy)? Did you ever have an injury to your cornea? Are you having a good day today? How is the BCL working during sleep?

      Lucy, I am sorry to hear that you are "not impressed" with the results. Is it because of refractive quality, erosions, both, or something else? You have been really kind to me on this board and generous with information. I hope that I am not being too intrusive, asking for more details.

      I certainly hope that at the very least you each will be able to put the painful erosion cycles behind you. I'll be keeping you in my thoughts and eagerly reading your updates. Thanks, so much, for sharing what you have gone through, because it gives me more clues for coping with my problem.

      Comment


      • #4
        Third Day

        Hi All,

        First, to Lucy, I am glad that you made a post to this, I had been reading your post before I did it, hoping to hear some better news from you. I am not familiar with the reasons you did it, so I wasn't sure if your motives were the same as mine. If you wouldn't mind, I would like very much to hear more about why you decided to do it, as well as what specifically is making you less encouraged about the results.

        Second to Liz, yes, I had been diagnosed with "Map Dot Fingerprint" in both eyes, and no, there was no injury in either eye, other than the surface injuries caused by the erosions themselves. I cannot point to where, but I had read some medical postings indicating that this was the preferred treatment for people in my position. I also sought a second opinion before proceeding from another Ophthalmologist, and he was quite sure the procedure would be helpful.

        My goal in all of this is to eliminate the recurrent corneal erosions. If that happens, then that is the result I am looking for. I am not having any trouble sleeping with the bandage, but tonight will be the fourth night. I can tell you that it gets uncomfortable during the day, and I am looking forward to getting it removed. I have found that I am able to drop some Systaine drops in when it gets uncomfortable, and that seems to help a lot.

        I am able to see fairly well through the bandage, but not as clearly as without one at all. The doctor told me to expect the left eye (the one he did the procedure on) to be blurry or double a little during the healing as the surface cells grew back together. That's what I am experiencing. The swelling and redness is nearly gone, and I suspect that it's healing well, but I won't know until the Dr. looks at in on Thursday.

        I think that's it for now. I will try to post more after I see the Dr. this week.

        Comment


        • #5
          Gard, I intended to send you a P.M. with some detail earlier today. Now, I'm foggy after watching tv all evening and I can't find my PM message to you. Maybe I got sidetracked. If you got it, all is well. If not, just tell me and I'll give you more detail in private message. Lucy
          Don't trust any refractive surgeon with YOUR eyes.

          The Dry Eye Queen

          Comment


          • #6
            1 Week Follow Up Doctor Visit

            It has been 1 week, and I returned to my eye doctor today. He was very happy with the look of the left eye, and was also happy to hear how much better I could see. Since the bandage contact lens has been tolerable, he decided to leave it for another week. He said it may come out on it's own, and if it does, then it will be ok. He told me that my eye was healing very well, and that full healing generally takes 6 to 8 weeks. However, he made an appointment for me to have the BCL removed in 1 week.

            I was told that I can decrease my antibiotic drops from 3 times / day to 2 times / day. Once the BCL is out (not before), he'll want me to use Muro 128 in that eye for at least 2 months. (Note, that I am continuing to use the Muro in the right eye as I have been for some time).

            Ultimately, I will most likely need to get the superficial keratecktomy done in the right eye, but the Dr. and I both want to give it some time so that we can be sure that the left eye does in fact heal, and the erosions stop.

            I will try to post again with any updates that are worth writing about in a few weeks.

            Comment


            • #7
              Gard,

              I'm happy to hear that your healing is going as planned and that you are tolerating the BCL!

              I hope that all continues to go well for you. That means that there may be hope for others of us with the same problem, and, of course, I will be happy for you if the procedure takes care of the erosions in the long term. They certainly are disruptive.

              Do keep this thread alive by letting us know how you are doing-- even if it is after a long time. I don't have any information about how PTK works for real people in real life, so don't spare the details.

              Wishing you well,
              Liz

              Comment


              • #8
                I don't have any information about how PTK works for real people in real life, so don't spare the details.
                Liz, the PTK is something different than what Gard had. PTK is done with a laser and a very experienced physician. What Gard and I had done was a basic scraping of the epithelium with hand tools.

                PS. Just making this note so if someone reads it, they do not mistake the PTK for the discussion of this thread. If I'm wrong--someone come in and fix it, please. Lucy
                Don't trust any refractive surgeon with YOUR eyes.

                The Dry Eye Queen

                Comment


                • #9
                  Thanks for the correction, Lucy. It looks like I have some homework to do.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Hi, I read this thread with great interest. I have been diagnosed with ABMD. Like Gard, I bounced around optometrists until I landed at a cornea specialist who gave me this diagnosis.

                    I am just recovering from my 4th episode. This most recent episode was only several months after the previous one, so my doctor has recommended a superficial keratectomy.

                    Gard, if you are still participating, I'd love to hear how you are doing now, in 2011.

                    Steve

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Just a tip... If you click on a member's name, you can see when they were last online. (In this case, 2007.) But I think there may be other members around who have had this procedure more recently and perhaps they'll chime in.
                      Rebecca Petris
                      The Dry Eye Foundation
                      dryeyefoundation.org
                      800-484-0244

                      Comment

                      Working...
                      X