Detached retina

[agm]

It has been almost 3 years since my surgery for a detached retina.  I can still feel irritation due to the buckle that was used and my doctor says in time the discomfort may go away.  I have also had increased pressure in my eye since my surgery that is decreasing somewhat but still not normal.  I also have Peripheralvdouble vision.  Are these problems...double vision, discomfort, irritation, and increased pressure things that I should seek a second opinion about or just wait and hope the "go away"?

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

Hello Trisha,   You would have to have an examination by a Strabismus specialist as described above. They can advise you whether strabismus surgery is appropriate. The strabismus specialist would probably not want you to have the buckle removed without a retina surgeon agreeing the risk is worth taking. Removing a buckle does not always cure the double vision.

JCH III MD  Disease and Surgery of the Eyes

[Trisha Acosta]

I too have similar symptoms and I had my surgery in 2001. I had a scleral buckle placed in  my right eye.   My main problem is the double vision when my eye looks to the right. I want to know if surgery to remove the buckle is worth the risk. Will I be better or worse off?
Trisha Acosta

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

Hello agm.   Three years is a long time. I would expect everything to 'be healed' in a maximum of 6-12 months.

At times the scleral buckle or the sutures used to fix it in place can erode into the eye (intrusion of the buckle) or through the outer covering (conjunctiva) and cause irritation. Depending on a number of circumstances that I cannot determine in a forum like this, the sutures may need to be trimmed back or in special cases the encircling buckle cut or even removed.

When you say 'pressure' I'm not sure whether you mean a pressure sensation your feel or the actual intraocular pressure measured with the tonometer by your physician or their staff.  If you mean something you feel I would have expected it to feel normal by now. If you mean the intraocular pressure (IOP) is high that should not be due to the surgery and is probably a different issue. The IOP needs to be monitored and special tests may be necessary to be sure glaucoma doesn't set in.

Double vision is a well known and relatively common complication of scleral buckling surgery. The encircling buckle has to be threaded under the eye muscles and the eye muscles have to be manipulated during surgery. In many cases the double vision clears but again I doubt things are going to change after 3 years.

I would suggest that you get an independent consultation from another ophthalmologist (Eye MD physician) perhaps starting with another retina specialist. You may need to discuss the double vision with a Pediatric/Strabismus Ophthalmologist.

Bottom line the time for waiting for these to 'go away' has passed and you need to start moving in the direction of trying to help your problems.

JCH EYE PHYSICIAN  Doctor of Medicine  (MD)