Update on CXL: Meeting the doctor

[Grim10]

it was not a pleasant visit at the doctor. I have posted earlier that I had CXL in august 2011. Postop I saw 7/10 with glasses and my vision had not changed that much in the latest year. I am i my mid 30`s. And now I began to wonder if the doctor was right doing CXL in my eye? When I asked he got furious mentioned that I was after suing him, I am not i am just trying to understand. I now 10 months later see 0/10 with or without glasses, I can see only 5/10 with a lens (postop 10/10 with lens) but cannot tolerate a lens.
I got no haze, and no other things wrong with my eye and the doctor thinks waiting another months will do the trick. I am very skeptical.
He also told me that he thought i was because of my collagen fibres in the cornea has been messed up and not in the right place.
I am out of options please help me someone, what should I do?

Also I have a keratoplatic (full not lamelar) in my other eye, doctor mentioned that I am i high risk for glaucoma cause of this and that all transplants must be replaced every 15 year at least. Is this true??

[Anne Klepacz]

Hi Grim10,
I haven't got anything to add to the previous replies you've had from various people about your CXL. Is it possible for you to get a second opinion from another specialist?
But as far as grafts are concerned, mine were done 26 and 24 years ago (one in each eye) and they are both still going strong. I also know people whose grafts are older than mine. There are also people who have posted on this forum who have had a successful regraft at around the 20 or 25 year mark. So again, it's one of those things that varies from one graft to another, but there's no general rule that says a graft will only last for a certain number of years. At the conferences we've held for our members, we've had several talks about corneal transplants from ophthalmologists. None of them have mentioned a high risk of glaucoma. Some people do develop high intraocular eye pressure as a result of the steroid drops post graft, but that is something that is routinely monitored at follow up visits and is usually easily reversed. So I hope your graft will continue to work well for you for many years to come!
Anne

[harker]

Hi Grim,

Sounds like a pretty unpleasant experience with the doctor. I still think there's a good chance you'll improve, but unfortunately there's always a possibility that the doctor did everything right and you were one of the unlucky ones. Just for the record, was your procedure epi-on or epi-off? And have you found out how thin your cornea was before the opp? It might help some of the professionals here make predictions if they had that info.

For some perspective, it's taken my left eye about a year to get back to a similar functional level as before. Even then, I think the vision is a teensy bit more distorted than it used to be, especially in low light.

[Andrew MacLean]

Hi Grim

The only cause of glaucoma I've ever heard of associated with corneal graft surgery is the use of steroids following surgery. This can also lead to the development of cataracts.

It is because of the possible (and mercifully rare) complication of steroid use that your ophthalmologist will always check your IOP when you have an appointment: early signs of glaucoma are easily treated and the condition can be managed without injury to your sight.

As to the longevity of a cornea graft, I guess that question is a bit like asking the length of a piece of string. Some people have grafts when they are young and live the rest of their lives without trouble.

All the best

Andrew