Chronic Retinal Detachments

Question from a reader: Thanks for reviewing my email concerning my father's damaged right eye from 5 retina operations six years ago.

History: Had cataract surgery on the only good eye my father had. The other one was damaged some time ago from a blood clot in the vicinity of the eye. During the cataract surgery the physician cut into my father's retina. An incision long enough to warrant stitches. My father had stitches for 6 months visiting the physician on a regular basis. After six months went by the stitches were removed. Some months passed and my father was having a hard time seeing out of that eye. Arranged an appointment with the same physician. Determined that my father's retina was detached. Right away we took my father to the Retina specialists out of state. Over the course of a year and then some my father had 5 operations on his retina. Each time the retina came detached. Finally they got it attached and it stayed attached with loss of sight. Too many surgeries on that eye caused a lot of scar tissue. Maybe even optic nerve damage. He still sees from that eye but everything is a blur but he can make out some images.

My father is 88 years old but still in good health and has been praying for eyesight to come back for 7 years now. Is there anything that anyone can do for him. I hear stem cell research has come a long way even when it was not funded by the government. Can he participate in research projects?

Response:

Dear Anonymous:

Your father's vision loss is due to a chronically detached retina. Sometimes, it is extremely difficult to repair a long-standing retinal detachment or a large retinal detachment. Often, vision is restored, but sometimes, vision remains poor.

Stem cell research is promising. Unfortunately, there are currently no treatments or experimental treatments to repair tissues in the eye using stem cells.

Best regards,

Andrew Doan, MD, PhD

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