Eye Surgery

[jan pentecost]

ON Friday, I go in  to see an eye specialist (Plastic Surgeon)...to see about raising my lower lid and getting a gold bar for my upper lid. I was wondering if any of you have had either proceedure? I am almost 6 weeks out from my AN surgery and my left yey is driving me batty. I have ended up using a patch most of the time over my eye. I drove into Portland, Or yesterday...my longest drive since surgery....about 180 miles round trip. One way, I just used sunglasses and on the way home, I had my eye patched.
I was excited to tell my surgeon that my upper eye lid was moving...only to learn the uipper lid hasn't anything to do with the facial nerve (7th nerve) but with the 3rd nerve!! So I haven't  had any movement on my left side since my surgery....bummer!!!
Thanks all,

jan

[heyyouconnie]

I had my surgery on Mar 1 and still don't have any movement in my face or eye. I had a gold weight put in before I left the hospital. I really don't like it. It doesn't help that much and it sometimes itches. I can feel it with my finger in my eye lid too. That is very weird to feel. My eye lid doesn't close completely even with the weight in there. And now, there will come a day (I hope) that I will have to have the thing removed, which just means another surgery to me. My doc also cotterized my tear ducks, instead of just plugging them. Which is something else that will need to be taken care of.
Don't let me talk you out of the gold weight if your doc says you need it, but I wish I would have known all my options before they put one in my eye.

[jan pentecost]

I need some honest input. I know there are no guarantees...darn it, anyway. I just HATE this dry and constantly opened eye....one saving grace is that it closes at night for sleep....

Thanks for your response...any input is greatly appreciated!!!!
jan

[pejavar]

I had a eyelid surgery On Feb8th 2005 and its 4 months now , From the day the stiches were removed for the eye surgery till today I obsolutely have no probs ! its great it is one of the factor that made me go back to work ..I am a IT programmer looking a the computer screen all day ....Gold weight is the best thing to happen to AN patients

Good Luck

Pej

[jan pentecost]

Well, it looks like I will probably go for the Gold Bar and possibly, raising my lower lid. I did find out something yesterday....I had a collogen plug put into my tear duct...it will dissolve in 5 days....but I found out I am NOT producing tears in my left eye anyway. So glad I opted for the temp. plug. I can get a RX for something that will increase tear production...not sure if I will go that route.

I am excited as I am getting more twitches in my face. I started with my forehead and eyebrow suddenly moving to the right....now my left corner of my mouth will suddenly head south towards my jaw. Who'da thunk I would be excited to see my face contort!!!!! I am also getting "fluttering" under my left eye. All of this is happening maybe twice a day now. Last Sunday, I was having shooting pains (coming in two's) starting deep and at the base of my incision....shooting towards my face. They were like electrical shocks....not comfortable and it lasted for about an hour. Hasn't happened since BUT my doc seems to think my facial nerve is kicking in.

Has anyone experienced anything like this or any of these twitches in the face??

One thing I have to say....one sure has to have a positive attitude...that has gotten me thru this so far and made this all tolerable....
jan

[PSK]

Hello,
I just had reconstructive eye surgery on July 1st.  Previous to the surgery I had a tarsorrhaphy that was done a couple weeks after my AN surgery.  It served its purpose to protect the eye but was very hard to live with.  No one told me about other options except nerve graft and gold weight.
My neurosurgeon told me the gold weight wouldn't work as my lower lid drooped too much.

Finally, I saw a reconstructive eye surgeon.  He took down the old tarsorrhapy, made tendons from cartiladge to pull up my eye.  One in the inside corner and one in the outside corner.  Then inserted a gold weight in my upper lid.  This was all done under local anesthetic, very little discomfort, and my eye looks near perfect now and works a lot better.  I still have some sutures that don't come out till next Friday and the rest dissolve on their own.

This was my second AN tumor in 25 yrs. and my eye was my biggest problem this time around.  If anyone out their is anguishing over an eye sewn shut  know their is hope.

PSK
 AN  surgery 1/80 Ft Wayne Ind, Dr. Kachmann and 11/04 Cleveland Clinic , Dr Lee

[steph]

Hi jan, I had a gold weight put in and the lower lid lifted exactly one week ago today so far so good, the swelling was a little more than I expected but I already am using less than half of the drops that I used to use, if you need any info or day to day what to expect please let me know. I am excited about this I think that it is really going to make a difference. I did talk to the surgeon about my concern of how it would change the look of my face and there are some options there. good luck please let me know if I can help. steph

[kristin]

hi jan! i'm wondering about the script for increasing your tear production? i have 2 plugs in my left (AN side) eye and one in my right. i also have a auto-immune disease called sjogrens that decreases tear production. for awhile the plugs worked wonderfully, but lately i've just been filling up w/ goo. maybe a prescription would be a better idea?