Hospital appointment
Posted , 4 users are following.
i posted a couple of weeks ago about seeing flashing in my eye. I went to an emergency optician appointment and he said the gel inside my eye was pulling away from the retina and that there was a very tiny bleed, he would write to the hospital to let them know and they will decide if they wanted to see to laser it or just to keep an eye on it. I hadnt heard anything to assumed all was well until i received a letter today saying an urgent appointment has been made for me at the end of the month. Does this sound normal? should i be worried? am i right in thinking if it was serious they would have wanted to see me before the end of the month?
0 likes, 7 replies
Marina_Dee Bakebeans
Edited
It may have been the Covid virus that has caused the delay. Most clinics were closed and have only just started reopening.The referral letter from your emergency optician will have been seen by the consultant and he/she will have assessed that you are OK to wait until the end of the month. You are not super urgent but you obviously need to be seen within 6 weeks.Some patients can wait much longer.
If the problem suddenly recurs before your appointment then go to your GP who can contact the clinic on your behalf for advice or you can go to A/E, where you will be seen by an Ophthalmologist. Make sure you keep the appointment.
Bakebeans Marina_Dee
Posted
thank you thats made me feel a bit better. The optician assured me it wasnt serious enough to be seen right away but to go to a&e if things got worse so when i was told today it was urgent i was in a bit of a panic
Bakebeans Marina_Dee
Posted
thank you thats made me feel a bit better. The optician assured me it wasnt serious enough to be seen right away but to go to a&e if things got worse so when i was told today it was urgent i was in a bit of a panic
clayton19233 Bakebeans
Posted
yes its not an emergency otherwise you would already have had an operation.
please do not rush into a retinal laser procedure. get them to take retinal pics to show you the issue, then agree on the laser treatment areas, and make sure those areas are only on the very periphery of your retina.
search for "white flickering lights after a retinal laser surgery" on this Patient forum to get informed on the dangerous risks of a retinal laser, they are real and have ruined many lives.
mjcg Bakebeans
Posted
The only thing that doesn't seem normal is that you have to wait until the end of the month to have your eye examined. I'd want to be seen yesterday (haha)! I'm assuming you've not had any further issues with your eye, correct? That, and COVID-19, likely is the reason it's taken awhile to get the appointment set up. The vitreous fluid is what's separating from your retina. It tends to tug and sometimes causes flashes of light, floaters, bleeds, tears and/or detachments. I had a detachment but knew immediately as a piece of my vision went missing (scary stuff!). I had an emergency vitrectomy within 24 hours of the RD diagnosis. A couple of months later, I had a tear in the other eye. Symptom was black wavy lines in my field of vision (more scary stuff!). They used laser treatment to repair the tear. This was all about 2 years ago now, and so far so good. Don't hesitate to take yourself to the ER if you have any additional symptoms. And please let us know how things go!
Bakebeans mjcg
Posted
Im glad your getting on ok now. My eye sight is fine and other than a few flashes (mainly at night) i dont seem to have any other issues so i hope that means everythings ok
Bakebeans
Posted
Not sure if anyones around to read this.
Everything's been going fine for 13 months or so. Went to my appointment and was told everything looks fine, live your life and dont worry about it, we will deal with a detachment if we have to. Great stuff.
Roughly 3 days ago ive noticed the flashing again in the same eye. Should i get it looked at again, wait a little longer and see what happens or assume the gel hadnt completely come away and is having another go?
whats peoples advice please? trying not to get too anxious at the moment.