Twelve and a half weeks
post-surgery (April 4):
Had another followup appointment today, with more
good news. But before describing that, let me digress for a moment to
explain what I've been doing the last two months.
I recently spent just under seven weeks
in Kenya, doing a short round of field research. If I were to give
the trip a name, it would be “46 Days of Dust and Wind.” It was
abnormally hot and dry in Kenya. The rainy season, which usually
(used to?) starts in mid-March and pours for a couple months,
replenishing aquifers and turning things green, was delayed. The
temperatures were high. Combine that with lots of road construction
in Nairobi and a number of very windy days outside the city (in
places like Kiserian, Suswa, Naivasha, Nakuru, Nanyukie, and
Enoosupukia), and my eyes took a bit of a beating. Or, more
accurately, my sunglasses took a beating. I was diligent about
wearing them to protect my still-healing eyes from the bright,
equatorial sun (and UV). I did a fair bit of driving in a Suzuki
Maruti rented from Rasul's, and with
no air-conditioning (or radio, but that's another story) that meant
windows open, exposing me to lots of wind and dust. I definitely got
grit, sand, and dust in my eyes on multiple occasions. It was painful
and annoying, but world's less painful than in the past when the
dust/grit/sand was grinding along with a soft contact lens.
Definitely a comfort improvement post-surgery.
The good news from Kenya is that it
looks like rain has started to fall, and if they get enough they
should avoid a pretty serious drought and food-production disaster
(think starving livestock, failed crops, and hungry people struggling
with rapidly increasing food prices). The bad news is that the rain
has already caused another kind of disaster: a landslide in Nairobi
that killed at least 6 people and has many more trapped under rubble
in Mathare, an informal
settlement/slum area that lies between the rough Eastleigh area and
the uber-ritzy Muthaiga. This is what happens when inequality,
corruption, a complete lack of land-use planning, and climate change
come together.
Okay, now back to my eyes. At my
check-up today the first job was to read lines on the wall chart.
With my right eye, I scored a 20/20, although it was a bit blurry
(and I may have missed one letter; P and F look a lot alike...). With
my left eye, a much clearer, easier 20/20. Up close I was able to
flawlessly read the ridiculously tiny print on a card held by the
doctor. Pretty good, but I was hoping my vision would be a bit
sharper at this point. I certainly have no trouble seeing well for
everyday activities, but my vision currently may be slightly less
sharp than it was with contacts before surgery. The doctor explained
that sharpness may continue to improve, especially now that I have
finished the course of steroids that was helping to prevent scar
formation as my cornea healed. One of the side-effects of steroids
like Lotemax is slightly blurred vision. Over the next few weeks, I
may have more consistently clear sight.
The upside of the Lotemax, however, is
that the doctor saw absolutely no signs of scarring on my cornea or
epithelium. Looking at my eyes alone, it would be next to impossible
to tell that I've had laser surgery done. This is one of the benefits
of PRK over LASIK, in addition to leaving me with a
structurally-stronger cornea and no permanent flap in my eye.
Overall evaluation at this point: I'm
moderately happy with the vision results. 20/20 is good, but not the
best it could be. Not that I'm complaining about having normal vision
with no need for correction. I'm hoping the slight blurriness in my
right eye continues to clear up, and it may be that this is due to
lingering dryness that will resolve over time. In terms of comfort
and convenience, my recent trip to Kenya was easier and simpler than
any other travel I've done, because I didn't need to lug around
bottles of solution and spare lenses, and didn't really need to be
concerned about whether I'd be able to pop my lenses out to sleep. So
far, I'm about 95% satisfied.
Next check up is at the beginning of
July, so barring any major changes in the meantime – like
regression or developing X-ray vision – that will probably be my
next update here.
