Gas Bubble Question

[dejayou22]

I am 22 years old, and I had retinal detachment surgery at the end of January, and then cataract surgery in the beginning of February where I had to get my lens removed. I am now just waiting for the gas bubble to dissolve so I get the lens replaced. I am seeing the specialist on 3/24 but my retina specialist wants the bubble to be dissolved by then.

If it's not, he said I would have to get a needle in my eye to insert air or something like that to get the bubble to dissolve faster. Is there anything I can do to make it dissolve faster? Any foods to eat, or maybe even avoid? For some reason I am more scared for this needle in my eye than the surgeries I had before.

If there's nothing I can do, is there any insight to the amount of pain that this causes? He said I would be numbed but I still am nervous because he said there may be a little pain.

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

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[vee1959]

I had surgery for a macular hole six weeks ago.  I have a scheduled trip out of the country in a week. It has been scheduled for over a year. My retina specialist said that he can remove the rest of the bubble that is still left in my eye.  He said there is risk, but it is less because it was not a retina detachment.  Have you seen this procedure done before?

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

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[mike230]

I had the gas bubble last September, let it dissolve on it's own, and most of all maintain the proper head position at all times.  The longer the bubble is in there, the better it will seal the retina.  With my crystalens, I wound up having perfect vision and a vitrectomythat got rid of all my floaters.  To Dr. Hagan, I did have that visco dissection of the posterior synchia surgery to break up that adhesion that was causing my pupil to stick open, made a big improvement. The vision is so clear in the morning at all distances, but I must stay on those nevanac and omnipred drops for 8 more weeks as a precautionary measure and this can raise a little havac with the vision.

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

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[matt_ret_d_vitrectomy]

Don't worry about gas bubble reduction/removal.  I had the same thing done, except it was to remove most of the large bubble of residual PFO (perfluorooctanate?) liquid in my eye that was left over after vitrectomy.  (it sinks to the bottom of the eye, rather than floating).
As berrywoo said, it's relatively painless after a topical numbing drop is given.  Just be calm and hold steady.  Should be only a minor discomfort during the procedure (nothing compared to what you've had already) and then maybe some discomfort after.
If the bubbles not going away on it's own fast enough, there's nothing you can do yourself to make it go faster.  It has to dissolve into the fluid in your eye, and then be removed by whatever process circulates that fluid in your body, and the gas dissolution is a relatively slow process.  Two kinds of gas are used for bubbles, one is quite slow to dissolve and one is faster.

  Good luck with your procedure and recovery!

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

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[berrywoo]

Don't worry. If the doctor has to remove the bubble it won't hurt. You might feel a bit of pressure when the needle is inserted and again when it is removed but other than that it really isn't painful.

First you'll be given some numbing drops and probably also some betadine drops (which may run down the back of your throat and taste disgusting). Then you'll sit at the slit tamp and the doctor will tell you to look in a certain position so he can inject the needle. It's all over with in a matter of seconds.

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

No there is nothing you can do to affect the rate it dissolves. Discuss this more with with your surgeon or his/her staff.

JCH MD