Unfortunately, Dr. Garg didn’t notice anything new. When I asked him his opinion on why my vision has deteriorated he told me that the multiple issues of congenital glaucoma, cornea and cataract surgeries, and a retina that was “pooping out” (his words,) were the reasons. He explained that while he didn’t notice any problems with my retina he said that age and everything going on with my eye causes it to “wear out.” He said that, like a favorite shirt that you wear often, each time you wear it and then wash it, it starts to wear out over time. He told me to take zinc and extra vitamin C (along with my current multivitamin) to keep the cells in the retina alive and healthy for as long as possible.

I was obviously disappointed that he didn’t find something that could be corrected which would then give me improved visual acuity. On the bright side, if there is one, I will cut back on all the specialist appointments to twice per year for each. If there is a problem, I’ll first try my local ophthalmologist.

As I continue to look for things to help me see stuff I can’t, I’ve found an app for my iPhone that is a great magnifier. It is the only app I’ve ever paid for and bought it after trying most if not all of the free magnifier apps. It is Magnifier – Capture the Micro World! by Game Lingo. I tried it the other day when I was home alone and wanted to know the serving size and calorie count of walnuts. I was very excited when I was able to use my iPhone rather than take the bag into my office and put it under my reading machine. I’ve been hoping for a good app for the iPhone because I just didn’t want to carry something else in my pocket. I’ve been looking for a good hand-held magnifier, whether it be a regular magnifying glass or a digital device like the Pebble from Enhanced Vision, for the last six months or so. Once I use the app more, I’ll post a more in-depth review.

Retina Check is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: afternoon, app, cataract surgeries, check, congenital glaucoma, Dr. Garg, free magnifier, magnifier, retina, visual acuity

The appointment started with the typical questions from a tech about how my vision was doing, if I was experiencing any pain or discomfort, etc.  Then it was time to read the chart with my left eye.  The E was not a problem.  The next line, C and D, I could see, but if I didn’t remember it I might have said G instead of C.  The next line, which I now know is DHN, I couldn’t see.  With the pinholes, I was able to make out the H.

She moved on to my right eye.  Good news there, I can still tell if a light is off or on if it is a foot or less away from my eye…  Yippee.  She then put, or should I say shot, drops into both eyes.  God only knows how many, but it was sure more than one of each.  One is to numb the eye to get IOP (pressure) readings, while the other was to dilate my eye.  While she was doing this, she left the chart on, so I continued to try to read it.  She then used a hand-held device to get the IOP (Dr. Ayres calls this device a glorified random number generator.)  IOP was nine in the left and mid to upper 20s in the right.  The previous week at my glaucoma appointment, it was eight in the left and 13 in the right using the standard device (the one that you put your chin in, press your head against the bar, and look at the blue light.)

She waited a minute or two and then tried to get another number on the right eye.  Meanwhile, I’m still trying to read the 20/100 line on the chart.  She then said I was cheating by continuing to attempt to read the line.  Eliz didn’t like what she said and asked how I was cheating if I was just trying to read the chart.  While the lady answered Eliz, I had my hand in front of my eye, trying to simulate the pinholes while still trying to read the line.  Hey, if you don’t want me to keep trying, shut the effing thing off!  As we got up to move to the next exam room, I glanced behind the chair where the chart is bounced off of a mirror and saw that the line was DHN.  Now maybe that was cheating.  How would that help me though?  It’s not like I could get a drivers license for reading the 20/100 line.

In the next room, Dr. Garg came in and asked some questions and then had a look.  He then told me that the only thing left to try were injections in the eye.  Before we try that though, he wanted to get another OCT scan to make sure the risk/reward was worth the attempt (actually, attempts, as it would take several injections over the course of a few months for it to work.)

Tom gave me the OCT scan a few minutes later, then we headed to another exam room.  After a minute or two, Dr. Garg came in and had a look at the scan.  He said that it wouldn’t be worth trying the injections as there was only a 15% chance of them helping me see better.  At that point, I said, “Okay, so there isn’t really anything you can do for me?”  “That’s right,” he replied.  He told me I could come back in five months (why?,) or sooner if I was having any other problems.  He did tell me to make sure that I see him, Dr. Ayres, Dr. Pro, or Dr. Ruffini frequently to get IOP readings.  Seems like ‘roids that I take 2x per day in the left eye could cause the pressure to rise.  Maybe it’s time to see Dr. House, Dr. Riviera, or Oscar Goldman…

So while my vision is not cuckoo bananas (a technical term Dr. Garg used at my last appointment in June,) it’s not good either.  So what do I do now?  Some days, my vision is better than others.  Today, for example, it sucked big time (I suppose that is a technical term I picked up somewhere along the way.)  Maybe I’ll see a little better tomorrow.  I’m not holding my breathe (but would if it would help…)

It’s Not Cuckoo Bananas, But It’s Not Good Either is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: appointment, C.  The, chart, Dr. Ayres, Dr. Garg, Dr. House, Dr. Pro, Dr. Riviera, Dr. Ruffini, eye, God, H. She, iop, line, Oscar Goldman, pinholes, random number generator, retina specialist, Tom, upper 20s

After some stretching (okay, very little stretching on the parents’ part,) we grabbed a ball and warmed up.  We threw the ball around like we do here: Jane to Eliz, then Eliz flips me the ball to me (I like to pretend I’m the second baseman and I’m turning a double play,) then I “fire” it to Jane.  Jane will sometimes just give me grounders that I field (without a glove, I don’t want someone to think I can actually play and throw me the ball) and throw to her.  After about 10 minutes of that the girls took the field and the parents went to the bench.

The batting order was determined by who went over and grabbed a bat first.  I hit fourth.  We went through the order all at once.  After three outs though, if there were any runners on base, they came in and the next batter started a “new inning.”  Wasn’t too different than t-ball for Jane about eight years ago.  Two of the first three parents struck out, while the other grounded out.  I felt no pressure stepping into the batters box, since I wasn’t going to be the first one to strike out.  I so wanted to make contact.  First pitch was a ball high.  Second one was over the inside part of the plate, strike one.  Third pitch was in the exact same spot, strike two.  The fourth pitch bounced on the front of the plate, ball two.  I probably saw that one the best and had the bounce been higher, I probably could have hit it — like in mush ball.  The fifth pitch looked good, but I swung and missed, strike three.  There were at least six strikeouts on our team, including Jane’s K of Eliz.

I noticed when I was batting that I couldn’t see as well if I looked straight at the pitcher, I had to glance toward first base to see the ball better.  That concerned me, because that is what seemed to be going on over the last couple of weeks.  My central vision wasn’t good.  I went out with Eliz to stand in rightfield.  As we were talking, I told her my vision wasn’t right.  Since I started the drops, I had noticed an improvement.  I even commented to Eliz on the ride to school that I’m glad I took the eye drop just before we left home and that I was seeing pretty well as I watched the cars on the road in front of us.  How could my vision have changed so quickly?  Was it the running around while we were throwing the ball around?  Was it bright sun?  I don’t know what the answer is, but my vision seems like it has gone back to how it was before I went to Dr. Garg on Tuesday.  Once I finish with this entry, I will investigate macular edema a little further.

After two more drops today, my vision is bad.  I had trouble reading most of the graphics on TV tonight and the text on the computer is fuzzy.  Fortunately, I have an appointment tomorrow with Dr. Ayres, the surgeon and cornea specialist.  Maybe he’ll have an idea about the macular edema and the quick change in my vision.  Most likely, I’ll have to wait until I go back to Dr. Garg on 15 June.  It’s funny, I think if I had hit the ball, I don’t think I would have noticed or been bothered by the decrease in vision.  I’m already looking forward to next years game…

Couple other short items…  I spoke to Dr. Rist, my gp, today.  She was calling to give me the results from a blood test I had yesterday after my appointment with her.  They were all very good and well within the normal range.  They were dramatically better than a year ago.  My blood pressure yesterday was also pretty good, 104/68.  All in all, the 1500 calories per day has been a good thing.  I will be increasing my caloric intake to about 1700 next week, since I’m within a few pounds of my goal.  The doctor calculated my metabolism and came up with that number.  I asked the doctor if the results were back from the throat swab she had done yesterday (I’ve had a sore throat since early last week, along with chills the first day or two,) but they haven’t as of today.  She prescribed Amoxicillin yesterday since she had noticed some things in my throat.

Also, we’ve been getting more calls to our design company (Digital Graphics Design) as of late.  I had to cancel a meeting with a prospective client earlier in the week since I wasn’t feeling well.  Today we got a call from a professional looking for a small website.  I am going to attempt this one on my own.  Let’s see how that goes.  When I took the call in the morning, I was seeing okay and was confident I could do it.  Now I’m not so sure.

Play Ball! is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: ball, batters box, double play, Dr. Ayres, Dr. Garg, Dr. Rist, Eliz, Jane, jane jane, pitch, second baseman, softball game, Today, vision

After having difficulty reading the 20/200 line (their chart is different than all the others, the 20/200 line is CD not SL) I had my IOP taken (9 in the left, 28 in the right – that is high, but since there is no pain and virtually no sight, who cares,) I was given drops to dilate my eyes.  After a 10-15 minute wait, we went to another examination room.  Dr. Garg came in and asked me about the trouble I’ve been having and the surgery, then had a look.  He noticed something and said he would like me to have an OCT scan.  After another short wait, Tom called me in and did the OCT scan.  After another short wait, we went into a different exam room.

Dr. Garg came in and immediately said that I have Macular Edema.  I was pretty happy for a second.  I thought, “Wow, he actually found something!”  Then I though, “Uh oh, now what?”  I asked the doctor how it is treated and then I was happy again.  Eye drops (the name escapes me at the moment, but I think it begins with a D) four times per day.  That is easy enough.  He then showed Eliz and I (between my dilated eye and poor vision, I couldn’t really see much) the OCT scan from today and the one from 15 January.  He pointed out the difference in the one today, which Eliz was able to see.  After about two hours, we were done.  I go back in four weeks.

Today was the first of three doctor’s appointments for the week.  Tomorrow, I go to my general practitioner for a check-up.  Perfect timing for me to visit her, as I’ve had a sore throat for about eight or nine days.  I’m interested to see what she says about my weight.  I was in the mid-180′s the last time I was there in March.  I was 168 this morning.  I know many of you have been asking about how I dropped a total of 66 pounds since 10 December 2009 and want to know my secrets.  The short answer is 1500 calories a day and I weigh everything I eat at home (unless it is packaged, then I use the nutritional info on the package.)  When we’re out, I use the restaurant’s own nutritional info.  If a restaurant doesn’t provide the info, then I calculate it.  If I can’t calculate it, we don’t eat there.  Do you hear me Bertucci’s?  I’ve kept a food journal since February and I’ll post it soon (I wanted to do it a couple of weeks ago, but my vision issues got in the way.)  Friday, I visit Dr. Ayres for another post op check.

Lastly tonight, I went to Anthem Institute (formerly Chubb Institute) for a Graphic Design Advisory Board meeting.  It was both good and bad.  Good because I love talking about graphic design work, the industry, and the curriculum at the school.  They’re making some positive changes there that will give students a deeper design knowledge that should translate into being better prepared to land a job once they graduate.  The bad part about tonight was talking about new version of programs like Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, and Flash.  How is that bad?  I so want to use them, start shooting pictures again, shooting videos (and editing them,) and cool stuff like that, but my vision is not cooperating.  Maybe I’ll be able to get back to it once the drops work their magic…

Oh, and one last thing.  Really.  The parent daughter softball game is Thursday afternoon at Friends Central.  I am hoping to get an at-bat.  I will most likely strike out, if given the okay to hit, but I want to try.  I’ll let you know how it goes.  Fortunately, Lankenau Hospital is literally right around the corner…

Wow, I was Wrong! is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: cataract extraction, Dr. Ayres, Dr. Garg, info, last hope, OCT, perfect timing, poor vision, retina specialist, Today, Tom, vision, wait

Central Vision Visual Fields Test at Wills Eye

One of the problem I’ve noticed is that I seem to have more blind spots, especially in my central vision.  When Eliz and I were working with Jane at softball, I noticed I had trouble following the ball when Eliz would flip the ball to me from three to five feet unless I looked to my right.  I’m not sure what the above test indicates, but since I don’t think I’ve ever had this particular visual fields test I don’t think there is anything to compare it to.

Visual Fields Test Machine in the Glaucoma Dept. at Wills Eye

After my appointment at Wills Eye, Eliz and I walked up Walnut Street and stopped into the Associated Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired.  I had contacted them just before we moved Salon Supplies + Interiors and ForYourSalon.com out of that disaster of a building (which has been condemned, by the way.)  Between the move and setup of the business and waiting to see how things went with the surgery, I didn’t follow up.  Looking back, that seems dumb.  As it stands now, I don’t think things will improve dramatically, if at all.  You may say I’m a pessimist, but I disagree.  I would call myself a realist.  Sure, I can hope and wish, but I’ve been doing that since I was a small child.  Maybe I learn something and gain some confidence.

Visual Fields Test is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: appointment, caption, central vision, Dr. Ayres, Dr. Garg, Dr. Pro, eye, glaucoma specialist, Jane, retina specialist, test, Walnut Street, Wills, wills eye

I was not looking forward to another surgery on my left eye until things started going downhill in July.  The problem was, none of the doctors knew what was causing the problem.  The cataract didn’t seem much worse than a few months earlier, if at all.  After going from one specialist to another, it was determined it wasn’t a glaucoma issue or a retina issue.  Lets just hope it is the cataract that is the issue.

I’m having the cataract removed on 15 April (so I guess I’ll send our taxes in early…)  There is also a possibility that I’ll have another DSEK (endothelial transplant.)  The donor endothelia will be in the OR, just in case.  Evidently, removing the cataract risks damaging my now 70 year old endothelia (along with the other common risks associated with this in most people and specific risks for unique individuals, such as myself, with other eye issues.)

I am disappointed that I have to wait that long for the surgery.  I joked with Dr. Ayres that I was ready to have it yanked on Wednesday.  I’m sure I have been less than pleasant to be around at home.  Tonight, I was home alone while Eliz, the kids, and a few of Jane’s friends went to see Alice in Wonderland — I miss going to the movies.  My frustration level is high and it takes me so long to do many basic things.  I am so ready to get the cataract out, it is hard not to get excited.  I’m trying to temper the excitement, since it only leads to disappointment after the surgery (at least after the last three.)

Surgery No. 14 is Set is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: Alice, alice in wonderland, cataract, cornea transplant, Dr. Ayres, Dr. Garg, Dr. Ruffini, DSEK, eye, frustration level, issue, Jane, retina, retina specialist, surgery

On Wednesday, I’ve got an appointment with my GP.  It was postponed from 10 Feb due to the little bit of snow we had (not to mention the lack of power and heat too.)  When I saw Dr. Rist on 9 Dec, she told me to lose weight.  Since then I’ve eaten only about 1500 calories per day.  On days that I did some physical work like shovel snow, move our store inventory, etc., I would eat more calories as a reward.  As of this morning, I am down 41 pounds.  I’m interested to see what she says.

Jake is spending the week living at school, something he will have to do for his junior and senior years at Westtown.  We dropped him off on Sunday and will pick him up this Sunday.  He was really looking forward to it.  Then, when we got there, he noticed a Super Nintendo game system (circa 1991.)  The seniors whose room he and his friend are staying in left them a note saying that they could play with the system.  We have a couple of games from the video store that Jake has always wanted to play, but we never had the system (well, we had it, but upgraded to something else before he was born.)  I’m worried that school work might not be first on his mind this week.  Eliz picked him up some candy from BJ’s the other day.  You know, BJ’s doesn’t sell anything in small amounts.  She got him a variety bag of candy bars (not the fun size, the normal size) and a bag with god know how many packages of Skittles in it.  He posted today on Facebook that he was selling the candy.  Prices were $.50 for candy available in the school store and $1.00 for candy not carried in the school store.  I’m interested to see what he does with the funds, though his intentions could be philanthropic.

Jane found her letters from Tabitha tonight.  Tabitha was conjured up when Jake literally lost his first tooth.  It either fell out onto the ground or he swallowed it with his lunch that day at Granite Run Mall.  He was disappointed because he was so looking forward to putting it under his pillow for the toothfairy.  That night, after he went to bed, I wrote a letter from Tabitha, a toothfair from the North American office.  I expected it to be a one and done sort of thing, but when he lost his next tooth, we was just as excited to get another letter as he was to get the money.  And of course, if you do it for one, the other has to have it too…  Jane actually got a letter or two before she even lost a tooth.  She would sometimes leave notes for Tabitha under her pillow.  Jane laughs at the letters now, but she had fun reading them tonight.  She said each one had a little education, like Sesame Street.  I also would include things that I thought would boost their confidence and nudges on nutrition.  One day I’ll post them or publish them.

It is amazing how easy 700 words comes off my fingertips these days…  So much for a short update.  More later this week on the retina appointment.

This and That is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: aunt jemima treatment, candy, day, Dr. Ayers, Dr. Garg, Dr. Rist, Jake, Jane, Jemima, nintendo game system, North American, PAM, retina specialist, school, Sesame Street, shovel snow, store, super nintendo game system, Tabitha, week

Again, I was unable to read any of it until I flipped the pinhole cover down.  Like magic, the E appeared.  I then said I know the next line is S and L, but I can’t see it.  She told me I was wrong.  What!?!  It’s not S and L.  Now I had to know.  I moved the pinholes all around until it was as clear as it was going to be for me.  I guessed O for the second letter.  Try again.  D!, I said next.  That was it.  The first letter (don’t ask me why I don’t read them in order) looked like it could be an O, G, or C.  I guessed G in hopes of it being the GD line.  No such luck.  C was my next try and that was it.  Kelly mentioned that this chart is made up mostly of similar letters that repeat often, so my usual deduction that I’ve got a one in 26 chance which increases with every letter doesn’t work.  I’m actually going to have to read them.

Once I was finished with the eye chart, Kelly took us to another waiting room, where Eliz read me the story of the Penn State mascot in a recent addition to ESPN magazine.  Before we could finish, we were called to see the doctor.  Dr. Garg asked me about my issues and mentioned that he had spoken to Dr. Pro about me.  He explained that even though my right eye doesn’t do much he still wanted to check it out.  Since my cornea is really cloudy and I have a pretty mature cataract in it, they would use an ultrasound to have a look.  He also explained a test they’d run on my left eye, to check for changes in the macular pigmentation.  Dye is injected via an IV (that’s iv, not roman numeral for 4) and pictures are taken.  After he mentioned the dye, I remembered that I had this test before.  The images are wicked.  Unfortunately, I didn’t have a flash drive on me to get the images.

I went into another exam room to have the ultrasound and then back to the second waiting room to wait on the angiography.  After a 10 minute wait, Tom called me back to have the angiography.  He took a couple of images of my eye before putting the dye in.  The dye made me feel nauseous for about a minute.  Tom took more images and left to give someone an OCT scan (which took him all of five minutes — about 1000x faster than mine took on Monday.)  He then came back into the room I was in to get two more pictures.

I waited in the angiography room for a few minutes until they called me to see the doctor again.  He explained what he thought was going on.  He increased my use of one drop to three times per day and added another drop to try and get the swelling down in the retina and cornea.  He suggested that I wait on having the cataract removed until I see him again in six weeks.

After three hours, we were out of there.  We headed down City Ave to pick up Jane from school.  She called me just before the ultrasound and said she wasn’t feeling well, which I knew when she left for school.  I also knew we’d be right down the street from her and could pick her up after the appointment if she couldn’t last the day at school.

After I spent an hour, or so, at home (at which time I found out my mom had gone into the hospital — more on that below,) we headed over to Viva Salon in Springfield.  They’ve been having a problem with a hydraulic base that was still under warranty.  We swapped out the bad base for the good one that has been in our car since the move and headed to my next eye appointment.

I had scheduled this appointment with John Ruffini, another NPHS alum, to talk to him about the cataract surgery (and before I knew of any retina issues.)  He had a look at my still dilated left eye and we discussed my options and the problems that could arise from taking out the cataract.  He also thought it was best to see how the eye reacts to the increased drops and new drop.  I have put off scheduling the cataract surgery because of moving the business and the fact that it could undo the partial cornea transplant.  My left eye has endured seven operations over the years, with another one imminent.  I’m tired of going through these procedures and the recovery with mediocre success.  The risk/reward factor isn’t great, though I would do anything to preserve any sight I still have.

After leaving John Ruffini’s office, we made a delivery in Holmes and stopped by a salon in Milmont Park to look at a styling chair that needs replacing.  We returned home at about 4:00 pm and had an alarm company tech waiting to convert our system.  It took him about two hours (the whole story will have to wait for another time.)

We were finally able to head to Riddle to visit my mom.  She went to the hospital at around 8:00 am this morning because she was having shortness of breath and chest pains.  The doctor wanted to keep her overnight for observation.  She seems to be okay, though uncomfortable because of the shingles.  We are hoping to pick her up and take her home tomorrow.

A Long Day is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: 1964, C.  I, cataract, chart, congenital glaucoma, cornea, Dr. Ayers, Dr. Garg, Dr. Pro, Dr. Ruffini, Eliz, espn magazine, eye, Holmes, Jane, John Ruffini, Kelly, L.  Now, Media, Milmont Park, nether providence, Penn State, penn state mascot, Providence, Queen, queen of babylon, retina, retina specialist, Riddle, room, Rose Garden, Springfield, Strath Haven, StrathHaven, swelling, Teavana, Tom, Viva Salon, Wallingford, wills eye