Sunidhi Menon, a 29-year-old, IT professional underwent Lasik surgery in Surat in the month of February. She was extremely happy after her Lasik and did not need her clunky glasses anymore. World was suddenly more beautiful, and she felt so liberated. I can relate to that feeling! A month after her surgery, lock-down was being announced. She immediately decided to go back to her parents’ home in Navi Mumbai. She somehow managed to reach Navi Mumbai after a lot of difficulty. Being a computer professional she was sending 10-12 hours on laptop every day. Things were going great for her. One day accidentally her fingernail hit her right eye while she was rubbing her eyes. Her eye was painful for some time. She instilled the lubricating eye drops and slept through the day. To her respite, her irritation had settled down and she went on with her daily life and schedules. Slowly she started noticing a mild blurring of vision in her right eye. She ascribed it to her excessive computer work. She took a teleconsult with the doctor in Surat, who recommended her to visit a local eye doctor and get her eyes evaluated. She kept postponing that for the fear of Corona pandemic. 2 months later when she closed her left eye, she realized that her right eye vision had deteriorated even further. Finally, after doing an online search for a good Lasik specialist near her, she landed for a consult with me at Advanced Eye Hospital in Sanpada.
She went through a detailed eye check-up. The vision in her right eye had reduced to almost 50% of normal. Besides that, there was a distortion of her vision as well which could not be corrected even with glasses. I examined her and realized that she had developed an epithelial ingrowth in her right eye. This is the growth of excessive cells under the Lasik flap and this rarely encroaches on the centre of the cornea as well. Large epithelial ingrowths can cause not just reduction of the vision but also distortion of the remaining vision. She was basically functioning due to her left eye. We immediately advised her to undergo a small procedure to remove the epithelial in-growth. She got very upset and started questioning her decision to have undergone Lasik.
I can understand the agony that she was facing given the need for an additional procedure. I re-assured her. Finally, after some amount of counselling, she decided to get the procedure done. Her procedure was performed under all safety guidelines and was uneventful, and we removed the full in-growth. She was advised some eye drops and given a schedule for follow-up to ensure the proper recovery.
Now this incident brings home a particularly important point. Can we allow the fear of one problem aggravate another? We are all worried about the corona pandemic and taking utmost precautions so that we and our loved ones are safe. If everyone will develop the attitude like Sunidhi then doctors should be the first one to sit at home and not expose themselves to any risk! Rather than realizing that problem aggravated due to her delay in seeking the treatment, she started blaming the Lasik itself. In her case probably her fingernail injury led to the development of epithelial ingrowth which slowly progressed while she sat at home due to the fear of Corona virus.
I think we all need to realize that not doing anything is surely not the solution for a lot of eye problems. Even though teleconsultation is a great option for getting opinion for many eye problems but in some cases a physical visit is required to ascertain the actual eye problem. I have already written about it in more detail here.
Patients like Sunidhi teach an important lesson to each one of us. No health problem is a small problem and should not be ignored. To begin with teleconsult is a great option and in many cases that would be enough to get the right advice and treatment. Sometimes your doctor will advice you to consult in person. That is the time when not doing anything can aggravate a minor eye problem to a more serious one! Take all precautions with face mask, hand sanitization, social distancing and choose an eye hospital where all safety precautions are being implemented.
About Advanced Eye Hospital and Institute:
Advanced Eye Hospital and Institute in Navi Mumbai is one of the best eye hospitals in Mumbai. Eye check-up rooms and the operation theatres are state-of-art and equipped with the best diagnostic and surgery machines. Personalised care, infection free modular operation theatres and beautiful ambiance compliment the cutting-edge eye care offered at AEHI. Besides treating patients from Kharghar, Nerul, Seawoods, Sanpada, Belapur, Vashi, Ghansoli, Airoli and Panvel, patients from all over western India travel to AEHI for world class eye care management.
Dr Vandana Jain – Lasik Surgeon expert
About Dr. Vandana Jain
Dr. Vandana Jain is an experienced eye doctor dealing with cornea, cataract, and laser vision correction procedures. She has been performing all kinds of cornea, cataract, and Lasik surgeries for more than 15 years. She is a sought-after eye doctor and admired by her patients for her skills and friendly nature. She is very meticulous in her work and believes in giving her best to each and everyone.
Dr Vandana Jain, Cornea and Lasik Surgeon, Mumbai, India 