February 2009:
Next Glaucoma Surgery:
The surgery went well, although it was more complicated than expected. She had the valve in her left eye replaced because the first one was not working anymore. Apparently the entire valve was encased in scar tissue, which was not allowing any fluid to drain from the eye properly, making it impossible for her eye pressure to be controlled. We had noticed within the previous couple of weeks that the "bubble" (for lack of a better word) on her left eye was bigger than it was before so we knew the pressure was high. Dr. Kane said it was alot of hard work, but he got all of the scar tissue out and removed the old valve successfully. The new valve is apparently designed by Dr. Kane as he told us he had the company modify their design in order for it to work better. He placed this valve in a different area and at a better angle, so hopefully it will work much better for her.
After the surgery she had a patch over her eye for protection. The next day we took her back to Manhattan so Dr. Kane could examine her and when he took the patch off she had a pretty bad black eye. Her eye itself was really red and combined with the bruising underneath, it looked bad.
The next steps for her were to heal from this surgery and maintain lower eye pressure. Then in April she would have another cornea transplant and the cataract surgery done at the same time. We were unsure whether she would have a lens implant or not, since her doctor himself had not decided. If she does not get the lens implant she will have to wear glasses or a contact lens to maintain any vision in that eye.
We are taking one step at a time, and right now we are concentrating on just helping her heal.
Glaucoma is treated with systemic diuretic medications, a surgical procedure called iridotomy or iridectomy, surgical formation of a drainage shunt or all of the above. The condition is very rare and causes a rapid loss of vision if not treated immediately.
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