Now see here!
Today was the day the sutures were supposed to come out. But it was not to be.
I arrived at Dr. Goosey's office at about 11:15, a half an hour before the appointed time. When the time came, they took me back where they keep the expensive eye doctorish equipment and did a map of my eye with a machine whose name I do not know. It has a bunch of concentric blue circles that I suppose it projects on the eye. Then it takes some sort of picture, and a computer makes a topographical map of the eye.
After they took the picture, I was taken to another room for the obligatory numbing drops and pressure test, and interview with the technician (or nurse or whatever her job title is). I asked her how many of the sutures he'd take out on the first visit, and she said it varies. They look for sutures that are too tight and pulling things out of shape. Apparently, by selectively removing the sutures, they can adjust the shape of the cornea as it heals.
Then another move to another waiting room, and after awhile a move back into another examination room. After a bit more waiting the doctor showed up. He asked whether it had been three months since the surgery, and I confirmed that it had indeed been at least three months, and this was the appointment where the sutures were supposed to start coming out. He looked through the chart for the picture, but it wasn't there because it was still in the printer. At least that's the last place I'd seen it, which is what I told him.
Dr. Goosey retrieved the picture and returned to the room. He said he wouldn't be taking any sutures out that day. I thought this was a bad thing, but it wasn't. It showed only two diopters of astigmatism (or something like that), which is apparently an extraordinarily good thing at this point in the recovery. It seems I'm mostly just nearsighted now.
Anyway, the doctor had one of the technicians do a refraction (I think that's what they called it), and I ended up with a prescription that will let me see 20/30 with glasses, which is considerably better than I've seen in years.
So after I got back to Beaumont, I picked up my glasses and headed out to the one-hour glasses place, and an hour later, I had a new left lens. The difference is amazing. It's hard to believe that normal people get to see that clearly all the time.
Next appointment in six weeks. In the meantime, there's a Fatboy that's been sitting unused in the garage for entirely too long. I'll be remedying that presently.
I arrived at Dr. Goosey's office at about 11:15, a half an hour before the appointed time. When the time came, they took me back where they keep the expensive eye doctorish equipment and did a map of my eye with a machine whose name I do not know. It has a bunch of concentric blue circles that I suppose it projects on the eye. Then it takes some sort of picture, and a computer makes a topographical map of the eye.
After they took the picture, I was taken to another room for the obligatory numbing drops and pressure test, and interview with the technician (or nurse or whatever her job title is). I asked her how many of the sutures he'd take out on the first visit, and she said it varies. They look for sutures that are too tight and pulling things out of shape. Apparently, by selectively removing the sutures, they can adjust the shape of the cornea as it heals.
Then another move to another waiting room, and after awhile a move back into another examination room. After a bit more waiting the doctor showed up. He asked whether it had been three months since the surgery, and I confirmed that it had indeed been at least three months, and this was the appointment where the sutures were supposed to start coming out. He looked through the chart for the picture, but it wasn't there because it was still in the printer. At least that's the last place I'd seen it, which is what I told him.
Dr. Goosey retrieved the picture and returned to the room. He said he wouldn't be taking any sutures out that day. I thought this was a bad thing, but it wasn't. It showed only two diopters of astigmatism (or something like that), which is apparently an extraordinarily good thing at this point in the recovery. It seems I'm mostly just nearsighted now.
Anyway, the doctor had one of the technicians do a refraction (I think that's what they called it), and I ended up with a prescription that will let me see 20/30 with glasses, which is considerably better than I've seen in years.
So after I got back to Beaumont, I picked up my glasses and headed out to the one-hour glasses place, and an hour later, I had a new left lens. The difference is amazing. It's hard to believe that normal people get to see that clearly all the time.
Next appointment in six weeks. In the meantime, there's a Fatboy that's been sitting unused in the garage for entirely too long. I'll be remedying that presently.
Labels: Eye Surgery
posted by Jack at 1/18/2005 06:57:00 PM
6 comments
