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I'm 4 days 'post-op' following surgery to repair a detached retina in my right eye. My doctor says everything is looking good - which at this point means the retina is attached and there are no other complications. Recovery is a slow process so it's a 'wait and see' kind of thing - literally.

I got the works: buckle, vitrectomy, laser to weld a small hole in the retina, and a gas bubble to hold the retina in place against the buckle while the welds take hold. The gas will dissipate over the next few weeks. Full recovery could take up to 3 months.

The surgery wasn't pleasant, but I've had worse at the dentists' office. Except for the first 5 minutes where they put me out to numb up my eye and such, I was fully aware during the ~1 hour procedure. It was uncomfortable during the first part of the procedure while they put the buckle around me eye. I let them know it hurt a bit and they injected some more numbing juice which helped only slightly. The doctor assured me he had some gas and a syringe of something else (I don't remember what it was called) at the ready and could put me out quickly if I needed it at any point. I toughed it out and made it through. The rest of the procedure wasn't bad at all, just long.

This ordeal still has me scared. I am nearsighted, have had cataract surgery, and have had floaters most of my adult life. I knew I was at a greater risk for RD, but wasn't prepared for what happened and how quick. Fortunately our family doc had me into a retina specialists office within 30 minutes of me calling him. BTW, I'm still in my 50's and it can happen at any age.

I wasn't going to post anything about this, but I was thinking about how quickly it happened and how unprepared I was for it. If you are in a higher risk category like me, please get very familiar with the symptoms of RD and get to know a retina specialist. It was something I had been meaning to do. I just did it in one day.

This morning at a checkup I asked my doc if I should begin selling my guns and he said no. So if all goes well, I'll be slinging lead later this year.
 
Posts: 3953 | Location: UNK | Registered: October 04, 2009Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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My thoughts and prayers are with you! Had a co-worker go through this - he was hit in the eye with a soccer ball.

Did you suffer a trauma?

--------------------------------------------


Proverbs 27:17 - As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.
 
Posts: 8940 | Location: Florida | Registered: September 20, 2004Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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I have never had a detached retina, but I did experience Posterior Vitreous Detachment (PVD) once. It scared me, as apparently the symptoms are very similar to a detached retina. I went to the emergency room, told me my retina appeared OK, but referred me to a retina specialist who gave me the final diagnosis. I am very nearsighted, around the 9 diopter mark. Apparently very nearsighted people like myself are more prone to retinal detachment.
 
Posts: 941 | Location: Glendale, AZ | Registered: February 23, 2008Reply With QuoteReport This Post
Not really from Vienna
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^^as are those who have had cataract surgery.

Jimineer, I'm glad you're on the mend. As a high minus lens wearer, I have always been concerned about the possibility of a detached retina. A friend detached hers when she sneezed.
 
Posts: 26852 | Location: Jerkwater, Texas | Registered: January 30, 2007Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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I had a buddy experience this from a Sneeze!
ER misdiagnosed he got a $1m settlement!
Never got to enjoy it, had a heart attack 4 months after the settlement...


_________________________

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Posts: 8318 | Location: 18 miles long, 6 Miles at Sea | Registered: January 22, 2012Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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Eye Doc
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Now that it's happened in one eye, you're at greater risk for the other eye. I'd be cautious about shooting heavy-recoil firearms.

Glad things are going well.

Was it macula-off?
 
Posts: 2927 | Location: (Occupied) Northern Minnesota | Registered: June 24, 2003Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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Mine wasn't caused by trauma like you normally think of trauma. Cataract surgery is trauma. This surgery was trauma. Nearsightedness and, I should have added, getting older. See prior post about PVD. The vitreous shrinks over time and can pull on the retina hard enough to tear sometimes where the retina is thinner than normal due to being nearsighted (eye shaped like an egg). The vitreous shrinks with age and is a normal part of aging. All this combined and some bad luck I guess caused it.
 
Posts: 3953 | Location: UNK | Registered: October 04, 2009Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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quote:
Originally posted by bcereuss:
Now that it's happened in one eye, you're at greater risk for the other eye. I'd be cautious about shooting heavy-recoil firearms.

Glad things are going well.

Was it macula-off?


I won't be shooting my 12 ga shotgun anymore. Probably stick to .223 at most in a rifle. My whole perspective could change as I go thru this though. I may only shoot my pistols from now on.

The RD didn't involve the macula from what the doctor could tell. There was no fluid behind it anyway. That's fortunate. I'm not going to build my expectations for a full recovery of my vision. For one thing, the buckle will change my vision and my lense implant from cataract surgery will no longer be the correct power. Well deal with that later. And hopefully no double vision.

We discussed my other eye briefly and will do so more in the future. I'm not sure this has really sunk in completely.
 
Posts: 3953 | Location: UNK | Registered: October 04, 2009Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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I recently had a small horseshoe shaped tear in my right eye. The retina doctor lasered it back down and we think everything is going to be OK. Having that laser done is like staring into God's flashlight. Not pleasant, but I've had worse done to me. Hope you have a good outcome.


———-
Do not meddle in the affairs of wizards, for thou art crunchy and taste good with catsup.
 
Posts: 4306 | Location: DFW | Registered: May 21, 2012Reply With QuoteReport This Post
Don't burn
the day away
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Hope you heal up quickly,

I had an anterior stromal punch done on my left eye last year. Not bad but not pleasant either. It did fix the recurring corneal erosion I endured for almost 9 months. That condition is a nightmare.
 
Posts: 2074 | Location: Worcester County, MA  | Registered: December 05, 2004Reply With QuoteReport This Post
Drug Dealer
Picture of Jim Shugart
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I had Cadillac surgery nearly two years ago, then developed a detached retina in my right eye a few weeks later. I had been reading up and suspected what it was. They repaired it in less than 24hrs after I called them. Everything is fine now (knock on wood).

It's really scary when things go wrong with your vision. Hope you'll be OK!

Boxing would probably be a bad sport to take up now. Big Grin



When a thing is funny, search it carefully for a hidden truth. - George Bernard Shaw
 
Posts: 15471 | Location: Virginia | Registered: July 03, 2007Reply With QuoteReport This Post
Bookers Bourbon
and a good cigar
Picture of Johnny 3eagles
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quote:
Originally posted by Jim Shugart:
I had Cadillac surgery nearly two years ago, then developed a detached retina in my right eye a few weeks later. I had been reading up and suspected what it was. They repaired it in less than 24hrs after I called them. Everything is fine now (knock on wood).

It's really scary when things go wrong with your vision. Hope you'll be OK!

Boxing would probably be a bad sport to take up now. Big Grin


Ha, my wife is Korean and she had two Cadillacs!



BIDEN SUCKS.

If you're goin' through hell, keep on going.
Don't slow down. If you're scared don't show it.
You might get out before the devil even knows you're there.


NRA ENDOWMENT LIFE MEMBER
 
Posts: 7120 | Location: Arkansas  | Registered: November 06, 2010Reply With QuoteReport This Post
Corgis Rock
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quote:
Originally posted by jbcummings:
I recently had a small horseshoe shaped tear in my right eye. The retina doctor lasered it back down and we think everything is going to be OK. Having that laser done is like staring into God's flashlight. Not pleasant, but I've had worse done to me. Hope you have a good outcome.


Had almost the same. It was found during an eye exam. Then I was sent to another clinic and got zapped. First zap was God's flashbulb and then 167 more zaps. Follow ups have been fine.



“ The work of destruction is quick, easy and exhilarating; the work of creation is slow, laborious and dull.
 
Posts: 6060 | Location: Outside Seattle | Registered: November 29, 2010Reply With QuoteReport This Post
It's not easy being me
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Jimineer, good luck with your recovery!!

My father had a detached retina repaired in his right eye,...twice. He dealt with type 1 (Juvenile) Diabetes for 61+ years, and this was just one of the many side effects related to type 1 Diabetes.
I have always been especially careful with exams for my eyes, etc., as I've now had type 1 Diabetes for 32 years (I was diagnosed at the age of 24). I've always been a bit paranoid about the occurrence of things like detached retinas, etc. My Ophthalmologist has been a friend of mine since we were about 8 years old, and he was the Valedictorian of our high school class. He knew my father, and is very aware of the issues I face. He communicates with my GP & my Endocrinologist after my visits to his office. I feel very lucky to have that support.


_______________________________________
Flammable, Inflammable, or Nonflammable.......
Hell, either it Flams or it doesn't!! (George Carlin)
 
Posts: 2769 | Location: Middle TN | Registered: March 22, 2009Reply With QuoteReport This Post
Retired, laying back
and enjoying life
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Good luck. I am definitely pulling for you. Sitting around with your head inverted to keep the bubble in place really sucks. I had one in my left eye in Oct 2011 and unfortunately complications set in and it would not attach right. After 7 surgeries over the next three years and several other procedures I am too squeamish to talk about still over the next two the eye has finally accepted the retina back and I am getting some vision back in the eye although it is not enough to fit glasses for yet. I was running a Skeet and Trap range at the time but had to give up shooting clay birds because of the recoil plus I couldn't master one eye shooting good enough to stay competitive in the small guns. Today I shoot only my pistols and varmint guns just to be on the safe side plus I only need one eye for that.



Freedom comes from the will of man. In America it is guaranteed by the 2nd Amendment
 
Posts: 876 | Location: Northern Alabama | Registered: June 21, 2005Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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Ouch. Good luck and here is to a speedy and complete recovery.



" like i said,....i didn't build it, i didn't buy it, and i didn't break it."
 
Posts: 1299 | Location: N. Georgia | Registered: March 23, 2008Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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Thank you all for the thoughts and prayers!

My wife is spoiling me too so it ain't all bad. Smile
 
Posts: 3953 | Location: UNK | Registered: October 04, 2009Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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