-
AuthorPosts
-
Hey,
In getting ready for me eye surgeries in March…my ophthalmologist has said that I would have 2 separate surgeries to remove the bone first then another one to remove the fat? Does that sound right to y’all?
Do you have a consultation scheduled with the surgeon(s)? That would be the best source of information.
Like I’ve said before, two sounds odd to me unless they want to one eye at a time. I had bone and fat removed from both eyes during one, 4-hour surgery.
Yes, on March 5th. It’s bugging me and I just wanted to see if anyone else has heard of 2 decompression surgeries.
Agree with Gatorgirly. And no, I have not heard of this. Glad you have your appt. At this time, is seems like a misunderstanding. But maybe not. We sure look forward to hearing from you after your appointment on 3/5. WE’ll all learn something!
ShirleyI will definitely update
…at this point the surgeon has not asked to see one picture of what I used to look like and that bothers me lots…also it seems I’m back in the hot phase so with the new referral and TED flaring up again.. surgery will not be for a while.
Hi, as promised I am giving an update.
So my appt was March 5th with the ophthalmologist that I have been seeing for almost a year. This was supposed to be a follow up appt before surgery, scheduled for March 27th.
That same day I had a 6 week follow up appt with the surgeon who performed my TT…all went well and he, without hesitation referred me to a ophthalmologist/ocular plastic surgeon in the same hospital. He encouraged me to give my eyes time and said that 50% of patients who have TT and suffers from TED, their eyes do get better within time and that it had only been almost 2 months since my TT.
We agreed that referrals take time and I would have to wait some time to get an appt with the new eye specialist. So he went ahead an referred me. First appt is in May.I also had an appt with my optometrist that same day. I’ve been waiting to see this particular eye doctor for months because of his experience with TED. He did a full exam and determined that I need to be seen by a specialist sooner rather than later. ***side note*** this eye doctor’s office is in the same building on the same floor, right across the hall from the ophthalmologist/ocular plastic surgeon I had been seeing previously and the optometrist knows of him.
Oh yeah and he said that he has heard of more than one OD surgery for sure…
Well he referred me to a surgeon in the same hospital where I had the TT done (the two surgeons I was referred to are both on the same team and both have extensive, extensive experience which made me feel really comfortable).
I decided that I would go with whoever called me first with the nearest appt.
I got an email yesterday from one who booked me for May (that referral came from the ENT surgeon who performed the TT and as great as he is, he obviously had never examined my eyes-he was just doing me a favour because he could and knew I had eye issues.
Then I got a call today from the other surgeon-this referral came from the optometrist..for obvious reasons his referral was much more detailed. Wow super quick; my appt is tomorrow @ 10am.Oh by the way I cancelled the surgery scheduled with the previous ophthalmologist and did not attend the follow up appt. Something in my gut was not comfortable with him. He, nor his office has called me to inquire why. Guess my gut was right.
Can’t wait to hear how your appointment goes tomorrow!
Hey, it didn’t go as well as I’d hope. Left the office feeling like I was going to be stuck looking this way always which means I’m going to follow through with the appointment to meet with another surgeon in May- she’s a woman so hopefully it will go better
The one I saw yesterday said…I shouldn’t be driving with my double vision even thoug I don’t see doubles when I look straight (no other doctor has ever mentioned that to me before). He suggested covering one eye or prisms
He said he has never seen much change in people who have TED and have had the TT. He said that I have had TED so long (1 1/2yrs) that there isn’t much that can be done for me and that it is totally up to me if I want to do the OD surgery, lid surgery ect or stay like this.
He said the fat above my eyes would require “cosmetic” surgery even though I wasn’t born this way and that it probably would not be covered by ontario health. He mentioned something about the fat not being fat anymore but scar tissue now. He said he would not touch the fat/scar tissue above my eyes but remove the fat behind the eyes (the previous surgeon I met with said that he would remove the fat above my eyes?!?!)
He said he would do one eye at a time-2 months apart and that he would at the same time weaken the eye muscle which would lower the eye lids. He said my eyes would go back probably about 3-4 mm. That it would take several surgeries and that it would be at least 1-2 yrs before the swelling went down after all surgeries. He said something about a 3 wall OD surgery??
Every question I had, he answered as if he was annoyed that I was asking them. I brought pictures and he said his goal would be to get me back to my old face but that it would probably not happen. He put me on his 4-6 month waiting list and will be sending me for a cat scan
I am praying that the female surgeon I’m meeting with in May will be more compassionate and be more encouraging. If that doesn’t go well either, I’ll remain on the wait list and hope I make until then OR I may just go back to the first surgeon-the surgery bookings are way sooner
Its possible that the more well known specialists are just too busy and become so insensitive and cold after a while. Maybe I just need these 2nd and 3rd opinions to make sure Im making the right decision for me. I just don’t want them to mess up leave me cross eyed or worse than what I started out with.Hello – The fact that this doctor seemed annoyed by your questions is definitely a huge red flag! Hopefully, you will have a better connection with the doc you are meeting with in May.
Although it’s true that patients generally don’t go back to *exactly* the way they were before surgery, a skilled team of surgeons can make a huge, huge difference. I’ve seen some truly amazing “before” and “after” pictures!
I’m sorry that this is dragging out for another two months…but hopefully, this will get you to a surgeon that fills you with confidence, not concerns!
That’s a real bummer. My surgeon is the most amazing physician I have ever met, and I wish I could refer everyone with TED to him.
Kimberly is probably correct, but I am back to exactly the way I was before surgery and TED–minus the extra weight Graves’ and prednisone have blessed me with, bit that’s a work in progress. My friends and family can all confirm this fact. The best compliment I received after my surgery, while I was still bruised and half-blind, was, “Oh my gosh, you look like you did when you were little.”
Having TED for a year-and-a-half is NOT a long time. Some people have it for many years before they are stable enough for surgery.
I have never once heard OD referred to a cosmetic procedure. TED is caused by a medical condition, thus making it medically necessary. I paid not a single dime for my surgery, which was around $20,000 billed directly to my insurance company. I would ask the office’s surgical coordinator about this.
Three-wall means lateral wall (bone outside edges of the eyes), medial wall (bones between nose and eyes), and orbital floor (bone under eyes).
Anyway, I’m so sorry it didn’t go well. I would suggest you keep your appointment with the other surgeon and see how that goes. Did you get any information as to how many OD surgeries either of them do, yearly?
Thanks so much for your support ladies:)
No I didn’t ask how many OD’s they do a year:(
I only know that the first Specialist (one I’ve been seeing since last year) has done about 5000eyelid surgeriesHe also said that I’m too far into TED to be treated with prednisone and the only thing I could do between now and surgery was use lacri-lube, a Vaseline like gel I squeeze into my eyes at night.
I don’t know he had this “whatever” kind of attitude as if I sneaking around his back or something lol…yeah it is a bummer.
I’m thinking of following up with the cat scan, seeing a the 3rd surgeon for yet another opinion in May…if she’s like him or worse then I’ll make my decision from there.
-
AuthorPosts
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.