Sudden Vision Change
A ten year old boy diagnosed at Chandler pediatrician
Discover of a Vision Problem
Ackley (not his real name) was detected to be nearsighted this year when he went to the pediatrician in January and didn’t see the 20/20 line. Ackley had a vision screening before school started (August 2016) This came on very fast and as a surprise to his parents. To the parents, this meant put the brakes on the myopia as soon as possible. Ackley went straight into the myopia control program, skipping glasses.
A vision test showed a small Rx. But the topographical maps of his eyes determined unique shape of Ackley’s eyes. He was not a candidate for the simpler Paragon CRT lenses, even though his prescription was so small. I did a software analysis using the collected data points to come to this conclusion. A pair of iSEE Advanced Orthokeratology lenses were the best choice for Ackley. A pair of custom contacts were ordered to accommodate the prescription and unusual eye shape.
Ackley’s contacts arrived early March. At the beginning, Ackley’s Dad is inserting and removing the lenses from his eyes. The goal is by summer for Ackley to be able to insert the contacts by himself.
The first few days were challenging only because he was very vocal about discomfort every little thing that bothered him. It was not easy with insertion/removal because his lids were tight and his eyes were small. Dad would remove and reinsert at least once for the first few weeks each night.
I empathize with parents who go through this process with their younger children. Because, I have had this experience with my own children. I can offer real practical advice and hope for parents and patients to develop this skill. I have personal experience with the struggles that parents face inserting contact lenses. After enduring the process first hand I have become a better teacher and coach to guide you to success. At our Myopia Clinic we are here to help solve your problems.
One Month Checkup
Ackley has been through our myopia control program for over 1 month. His vision is excellent at 20/20 in each eye. There is no eye irritation and he’s enjoying clear and crisp vision all day long.
After 2 weeks of Dad inserting the iSEE lenses, Ackley decided to be brave and try to insert the lenses himself. Dad is very relieved to be hands off, but there are some cautions for parents out there who are not watching their kids. Ackley does not clean the DMV plunger well. At our clinic we review the condition of the contacts, tools and cleansers at each visit. AP needed to wash his plunger with hot water and rinse off at the end with a multipurpose disinfectant.
I’ve also noticed that he touches the lens on the inside on multiple occasions and this may lead to discomfort and multiple insertions. I’ve given him tips to pick up a dropped lens with a plunger and to handle the lenses on the edges only.
Ackley is currently using peroxide to disinfect, unique pH as the cushioning drop upon insertion, and just a multipurpose solution for the rinse.
Careful attention to detail can help ensure better performance and reduces the chances of bad luck.
Four Month Checkup
Ackley first started the program February 27, 2017. He’s been in the program for almost 4 months. He is enjoying all the benefits of seeing clearly like other kids wearing soft contact lenses or glasses, but with the added protection of trying to stop or slow down his myopia.
Ackley is still seeing 20/20 with the original custom iSEE lenses that was designed for him. He inserts and removes the lenses by himself without any supervision. The only comment is that there may be some initial discomfort upon the first insertion. When Ackley complains about some discomfort Dad would ask him to lay down so that a drop of unique pH in the nasal corner of his eye. This flushes out any irritant out the temporal corner of his eye. Practicing putting a lens in at the clinic Ackley does push hard into the eye. By using the unique pH drop before inserting the contact it allows the lens to loosen the suction to give better comfort.
One thing to note is that our lenses have a slight tint to them to help color code for right and left. Green is for right eye and blue is for left eye. (Green has the letter ‘R’ in it and blue has the letter ‘L’ in it.) This can be easily noticed when the lenses are placed onto a white paper towel or facial tissue.
We noticed that the peroxide containers may also have a different color scheme and may confuse patients. So when in doubt if you think you may have mixed them up, place the lenses on a white background to double check. And finally we also use Progent to deep clean the lenses and keep them as clean as possible periodically.
Four Years Later
It has been 4 years since Ackley started wearing the iSEE advanced orthokeratology lenses. He came into the office for a quick vision check 1 week ago and sure enough he was seeing 20/20 in each eye and 20/15 combined.
Ackley manages his contacts and cleanings. He’s using Clear Care (daily), saline rinse, Ortho K Thin drops (nightly) and Progent (monthly).
Ackley like all other patients is not always perfect. He’s worn both lenses in one eye! He’s switched left and right lenses by accident. (They are mildly tinted blue for left and right for green and the best way to discern their color is to place them on a white Kleenex) Of course, he’s dropped them. Sometimes he goes to Grandma’s house for the weekend and forgets to bring them. He’s travelled out of state and forgotten to bring a DMV plunger to remove them.
This is to illustrate to the reader that things happen and luckily all balance is restored once AP gets back to his daily routine.
During daytime hours Ackley’s vision is good without the need of glasses or contact lenses. Also, his myopia is not progressing causing more sever vision problems. Ackley has an unusual shaped eyes that required custom made lenses. Diagnosing the problem and quarterly exams allowed for successful vision correction.