My retinas detaching. Wait and watch? or operate?

[practiceacctk]

Hello, My name is Eric and im only 18 years old.

I went for a regular eye exam so they could fit me with a new prescription for contact lenses. during the eye exam they found that i had a hole in my retina.

that same day they told me to go to a specialist for a better look. - he found that my retina is detaching and that i do have a hole in my retina. He said the only way to fix this is to 'freeze' my retina and reattach it. Im sure many of you know what im talking about.

He gave me the option of getting the operation, but he said in his opinion we should wait to see if the detachment is progressing, or getting bigger/worse. - being that he's the doctor i agreed and he's scheduling me for another appointment in about a month or so to see how my eye is doing.

My question is, should i call him back and let him know i want the operation now? i have no floaters or curtains at the moment. besides having bad vision and wearing glasses/contacts i can see perfectly fine.

and like i said, should i tell him i want it now before i start to develop anything? or should i wait another month to see if it's progressing?

[AnnaE]

Go back and talk to him again, or get a second opinion.You want to avoid surgery, because there could be complications. I have strong feelings about this, because I have little vsion in my left eye, after 5 surgeries. My ophthalmologists did not refer me, and I lost most of the vision in one eye, because of complications from the surgery.

I am not a doctor, but a second opinion sounds good to me.

[nursegirl6572]

Hi there, I'm sorry to hear about your problems.

I agree to an extent that a second opinion is always a good idea....

However, I wanted to mention something, from a medical standpoint, while nancy's experience is horrible and awful, you cannot judge all situations the same....hers is a medical condition, and YOURS, due to age...I'm assuming was due to some sort of exertion ?  That is the most common cause of a retinal detachment, in a healthy young person.

To say to avoid surgery due to the possibility of complications, I just do not agree with, and each scenario/patient is totally different.  In some cases, the LACK of surgical intervention can be more harmful in the long run.  That doesn't mean, however, that it needs done RIGHT NOW.  Many retinal detatchments require IMMEDIATE surgery, while others can be treated more conversatively.  Thank goodness you were examined when you were.

Please meet with your doctor again and thoroughly discuss the condition, the severity of it, the possible cause, and all treatment options and risks associated with each.  

I just don't want you to become unnecessarily frightened listening to another's horror story....and I wish BOTH of you the best of luck.  I cannot imagine going through something like that.

If you (both) haven't already....research and educate yourselves on the procedures, what to expect, etc...and be SURE to ask your MD any questions you may have.  Always keep the communication open.

Best of luck!