Carter's diagnosis

Kerrin

DH took him to his 1st eye appointment last Thursday.  Since I was out of town, I have limited details b/c it's like pushing a rock uphill trying to get answers out of DH.

Carter has accommodative esotropia.  Basically his eyes are not working together and have trouble focusing.  He's also farsighted in one eye.  So since the brain can't "read" the image beign sent by the bad eye, it's simply not using it.  The specialist indicated that it should be treatable and is possibly correctable with glasses.

 

I asked DH what the optometrist said regarding vision therapy (he didn't need it at this time) and the option of patching (she said it could make it worse).  So they ordered some frames and we will go in this week to have the frames fitted b/c they are recommending that he wear bifocals.  I'm going to take him to that appt. so I can get some more answers.  I'd really like him to begin vision therapy and I'm super confused why she doesn't want to patch the good eye.  It seems that these things would accelerate the therapy process.  So I just need to chat with her. 

 

So it's a start.  DH really liked this woman, but I'm insistent on getting him to a pedi ophthalmologist.  He has an appt. with Dr. Lipsky at the end of April.  Nothing against the woman that did the initial diagnosis, but this is my son's vision and I feel he should be seen by an MD. 

 

   

 

 

dbryson

I usually get at least two opinions when it comes to this stuff.  And don't be surprised if their recommendations are different.  In some cases I go to three Drs and then just go with my gut.

Melliebugs

You were so brave to send DH.  I know what you mean about trying to pull information out of them.  Noah has been telling his mom that Kate is fine and there is nothing wrong (this was prior to our recent visit). 

Sounds like you have a place to start.  I hope that you get more information at your next appt. Also glad that it can be corrected!  That is very good news!

Kerrin

dbryson:

I usually get at least two opinions when it comes to this stuff.  And don't be surprised if their recommendations are different.  In some cases I go to three Drs and then just go with my gut.

Totally with you on this.  I will be interested to see what Dr. Lipsky suggests.

Kerrin

Melliebugs:

You were so brave to send DH.  I know what you mean about trying to pull information out of them.  Noah has been telling his mom that Kate is fine and there is nothing wrong (this was prior to our recent visit). 

Sounds like you have a place to start.  I hope that you get more information at your next appt. Also glad that it can be corrected!  That is very good news!

I nearly cancelled my beach trip when i learned that he scheduled it for Thursday.  But i sooooo needed that trip and she wasn't the Dr. that i wanted Carter to see anyways.  I will definitely be taking him to his next appointment, but at least I have an initial diagnosis and can do soem research beforehand. 

myrall

Kerrin - I was treated for crossing eyes when I was in Kindergarten. Basically, my eyes crossed when I read. Well, when I was about 17, I realized that I was having difficulty seeing out of one eye. After a visit to the eye doctor, they realized I was near-sighted in one eye and far-sighted in the other. I ended up wearing one contact to correct the near-sighted eye. Doctors told me that if I didn't wear a corrective lense, I'd go blind in my "good eye" from over working it.

Looking back, I'm wondering if I shouldn't have been treated for that same condition waaaay back when my eyes were crossing as a little girl. 

Anyway, having the lopsided eyes hasn't been too much of an issue for me - more of a curiosity than anything else. My doctor told me that my brain had somehow trained my eyes to almost work independently of each other because their focus points were so different. I now wear glasses with a prescription in one lense (to correct the near-sighted eye).

Hope y'all are able to get some good answers and find a reasonable treatment soon!!

MrsKLB

Glad you were able to get a diagnosis and that it is treatable but I totally understand wanting another opinion.  Go with your gut.  Good luck!

lindzed

I agree a 2nd opinion is always good.  I used a pedi specialist at the Thomas Eye Group for Adam.  Honestly, I thought it was  big much and I ended up going back to way too many apts in my opinion, but better to be too through than not enough.  If you want the doctor's contact info e-mail me and I'll be happy to dig through my stuff and find it.  lindsaymelda@gmail.com

 

dleigh2020

I have a child in my classroom who wears glasses for something similiar to this. One eye doesn't work as efficiently as the other. The glasses strengthen the bad eye. So as I understand it the good eye is blurred at bit therefore the bad eye has to work harder. I am not sure that makes any sense but it seems to be helping him.

I think getting a second opinion is always a good idea.

K&P414

Kerrin:

Melliebugs:

You were so brave to send DH.  I know what you mean about trying to pull information out of them.  Noah has been telling his mom that Kate is fine and there is nothing wrong (this was prior to our recent visit). 

Sounds like you have a place to start.  I hope that you get more information at your next appt. Also glad that it can be corrected!  That is very good news!

I nearly cancelled my beach trip when i learned that he scheduled it for Thursday.  But i sooooo needed that trip and she wasn't the Dr. that i wanted Carter to see anyways.  I will definitely be taking him to his next appointment, but at least I have an initial diagnosis and can do soem research beforehand. 

See, same here.  My husband is a great dad but he sucks out loud at things like this.  Sort of what I was getting at re: the daycare dad post. Anytime DH has had to take one of the girls to an appointment/meeting/etc. it's like trying to communicate with an ape to find out what happened.

Anyway, glad one appointment is out of the way and you guys are on the road to getting some treatment.  Keep us posted!

Aerorea

When you are researching doctors for second (and maybe third) opinions, you can add Emory to the list. I saw a pediatric ophthalmologist when I was a child there, though I can't recall if it was through the Emory Eye Center or not. It was definitely with Emory. I see a retina specialist at the Emory Eye Center (I'm legally blind).

slwprincess

I agree with getting 2 opinions.  Hope you guys can get this resolved for him fast- I know it must be so scary!

As for DH taking him... I realized that just doesn't work.  He had to take Gavin in a couple times when he was so sick after my c/s.  I swear to you, I almost had him put me on speaker phone just so that I could actually ask the Dr intelligient questions.  DH will ask the most idiotic questions like "can he still drink milk?" when he has an ear infection- WTH?!!! 

rara855

So glad you got a starting point. Hopefully you will get some more answers at the next apt. Good for sending your husband but, I can imagine it was hard not being there. 

savannah_bride

My DD has the pretty much the same diagnosis. She's farsighted so her eyes cross when she looks at things up close, much like people with normal vision will cross their eyes if looking at their nose. She's been in glasses since she was 8 months old and we just moved into bifocals this month. We don't patch b/c she doens't have a strong vs. weak eye. It's definitely a good idea to go to a pedi opthamalogist as they will be able to answer all your questions. Good luck! And for what it's worth, we use miraflex frames b/c the kids can't break them and you won't be in the optical shop every month getting them adjusted. Carter's older so he won't be as tough as a toddler, but it's something to consider when choosing frames. Get some that won't require frequent adjustments

hthomas02

well so glad that you got him seen and that you've got future appointments set up!  good luck lady!  big husg to you!

mrsd0907

I'm so happy that you've at least gotten the ball rolling and have a diagnosis. I would also get a second and possibly third opinion just to see. Derek has had some vision issues and the key to really finding out what was going on was to hear the same recommendation for treatment from multiple doctors. I hope you're able to get more answers and that things improve. Good luck lady, it's not an easy road but you're a great Momma for staying on top of it and being the best advocate for him that you can be!