An Eye Update

We just had our yearly ("big") checkup with Dr. P, Elena's pediatric opthamologist. WE LOVE DR. P. I cannot stress that enough--he is the epitome of a gracious, respectful, patient, knowledgeable, conscientious--all around EXCELLENT doctor.

For those of you who don't know (or started following us late), E had congenital strabismus; her first eye surgery was around 8 months (I forgot exactly) of age, with a doctor in-town. After her follow-up, I switched doctors to Dr. P. She has had two subsequent surgeries (her official diagnosis is (infant) esotropia), with the hope that she would use both eyes together, and hopefully, with depth perception.

Today is a great day!

After a 3-hr appointment, it's official: Elena has excellent vision (with corrective lenses). In the past, the prognosis was that Elena had two healthy eyes that may or may not be able to work together. Today, the word is that Elena not only has two healthy eyes (she does have a corrective prescription for astigmatism), but these two eyes DO work together, AND she has depth perception.

The biggest issue is her eyes do NOT work together all the time; when she is sick, or tired, it's obvious that her eyes drift. One more than the other (I forgot which), but they both do it. I can't imagine what that must be like...just tired? or headache-y? When she is wearing her glasses, and she is alert and healthy, her eyes look fine and move together.

All I care about, at this moment, is that 1) she is healthy and 2) reading is not uncomfortable for her. Since she read her book the whole way up to Dr. P's office, I assume that is not an issue.

Driving 3 hours out of your way (each way), spending the night away from home, pretty much sucks. Seeing a doctor that "gets" your kid? WORTH EVERY MINUTE.

4-year checkup

E had her four-year checkup this week. She's 26 lbs, and I FORGOT HOW TALL. She took a hearing test (she did well--auditory analysis when she was a baby indicated she cannot hear one tone in one ear), and she took a vision test designed for depth perception. It's a little early for Elena to be able to understand the test, but overall she did well, and the results indicated that she has (at least some) depth perception. This is HUGE for us, given her vision history, and how long her eyes worked separately.



Her regular eye exam (both recently with Dr. P in Northern Virginia and at her pediatrician) showed that she has some farsightedness with her right eye.

Her language and comprehension are great.

Her pediatrician sees a big difference post-SDR. He's real happy with her progress!