Post by chiangmai on Aug 22, 2022 8:37:34 GMT 7
An update on retina surgery:
It's been seven months since I had laser surgery to close a tear in my retina. The very very large floater is still there and has not sunk to the bottom of the eye as expected but it is after all the size of the Empire State so it may take a while longer. I've been back to see the specialist several times for check-ups but they were mostly routine checks which seemed pretty pointless after a while, there was no new information or action forthcoming so I lost confidence in her (see more on this later).
I was in the planning stages of a visit to the Rutnin Eye Hospital in Bangkok when Mrs CM suggested a couple of new options. The first was a specialist in the retina who works at a geriatric hospital run by the CMU. Sadly, the day before the appointment the hospital called to say the good doctor was not comfortable seeing foreign patients and would have to cancel, odd behaviour from a doctor, even odder from one who was trained in Oz! Whatever. I should mention at this point that the doctor who did my laser surgery at a private hospital is very senior in the academic pecking order, her nearest peers also refused to see me for a second opinion because I am regarded as her patient.
The last option was a private eye hospital where the most senior doctor worked and was trained in the UK for eight years, Deven and Cornwall, and speaks English like a native Brit., it was refreshing to have a complete conversation and I learned much. Firstly he said, let's look at the good eye to see what condition it's in because if the left retina is torn, the right retina may be close to being so also....makes buckets of sense to me, a small gem that was never mentioned or explored previously. After the exam, he explained that western and Asian retina's have different characteristics that local doctors may not fully appreciate. He went on to explain that his approach would be to perform 360 degree laser surgery to both eyes, that is to say, he would laser the entire perimeter of the retina to the underlying surface. After reading up on this topic I found that it results in a 75% reduction in retinal detachment and blindness whilst the risks are very similar to single-shot laser treatment. He tells me he has performed 360 laser treatment over 100 times, it is regarded as a low-risk procedure.
I'm currently waiting for feedback on the good doctor and the hospital in question to see what experience other people have had and then I will likely let him blast away at a single retina before assessing the results. There aren't many options, really, it's a case of laser once, laser a lot or do nothing. I've already tried the first option and the third option is not an option for me since it will lead to detachment and blindness. My floater may still be around for a further few months but the flashing lights are pretty scary, especially at night, they are like lightning bolts in your head, visually.
Last of all.....the expert specialist at the private hospital that I saw initially played bait and switch with me. I was initially offered a consultation with a student ophthalmologist but I declined and said I wanted a retinal specialist. Oh said the nursing assistant, the retinal specialist will be here in one hour, please come back. An hour later I was seen by the "expert" and declared to be problem free, "but come back in two weeks for follow-up". Two weeks later I returned and saw a totally different doctor who, following the examination became panicky and wanted to do laser surgery right there and then. I declined but she pushed hard and tried to scare me into having the procedure, I said I could have the surgery the following day...and I did. So doctor one and doctor two were different people, the first was a student on a quiet Saturday afternoon which is not uncommon in government hospitals. I confirmed the identity of the expert using a photo from the university web site, she panicked when she realized what the student had done hence the rush to get into surgery. I bumped into the student during a subsequent visit and said hi, she only smiled but didn't speak. Be careful out there, Thailand can be dangerous at times.
It's been seven months since I had laser surgery to close a tear in my retina. The very very large floater is still there and has not sunk to the bottom of the eye as expected but it is after all the size of the Empire State so it may take a while longer. I've been back to see the specialist several times for check-ups but they were mostly routine checks which seemed pretty pointless after a while, there was no new information or action forthcoming so I lost confidence in her (see more on this later).
I was in the planning stages of a visit to the Rutnin Eye Hospital in Bangkok when Mrs CM suggested a couple of new options. The first was a specialist in the retina who works at a geriatric hospital run by the CMU. Sadly, the day before the appointment the hospital called to say the good doctor was not comfortable seeing foreign patients and would have to cancel, odd behaviour from a doctor, even odder from one who was trained in Oz! Whatever. I should mention at this point that the doctor who did my laser surgery at a private hospital is very senior in the academic pecking order, her nearest peers also refused to see me for a second opinion because I am regarded as her patient.
The last option was a private eye hospital where the most senior doctor worked and was trained in the UK for eight years, Deven and Cornwall, and speaks English like a native Brit., it was refreshing to have a complete conversation and I learned much. Firstly he said, let's look at the good eye to see what condition it's in because if the left retina is torn, the right retina may be close to being so also....makes buckets of sense to me, a small gem that was never mentioned or explored previously. After the exam, he explained that western and Asian retina's have different characteristics that local doctors may not fully appreciate. He went on to explain that his approach would be to perform 360 degree laser surgery to both eyes, that is to say, he would laser the entire perimeter of the retina to the underlying surface. After reading up on this topic I found that it results in a 75% reduction in retinal detachment and blindness whilst the risks are very similar to single-shot laser treatment. He tells me he has performed 360 laser treatment over 100 times, it is regarded as a low-risk procedure.
I'm currently waiting for feedback on the good doctor and the hospital in question to see what experience other people have had and then I will likely let him blast away at a single retina before assessing the results. There aren't many options, really, it's a case of laser once, laser a lot or do nothing. I've already tried the first option and the third option is not an option for me since it will lead to detachment and blindness. My floater may still be around for a further few months but the flashing lights are pretty scary, especially at night, they are like lightning bolts in your head, visually.
Last of all.....the expert specialist at the private hospital that I saw initially played bait and switch with me. I was initially offered a consultation with a student ophthalmologist but I declined and said I wanted a retinal specialist. Oh said the nursing assistant, the retinal specialist will be here in one hour, please come back. An hour later I was seen by the "expert" and declared to be problem free, "but come back in two weeks for follow-up". Two weeks later I returned and saw a totally different doctor who, following the examination became panicky and wanted to do laser surgery right there and then. I declined but she pushed hard and tried to scare me into having the procedure, I said I could have the surgery the following day...and I did. So doctor one and doctor two were different people, the first was a student on a quiet Saturday afternoon which is not uncommon in government hospitals. I confirmed the identity of the expert using a photo from the university web site, she panicked when she realized what the student had done hence the rush to get into surgery. I bumped into the student during a subsequent visit and said hi, she only smiled but didn't speak. Be careful out there, Thailand can be dangerous at times.