[BigV]

The next thing I saw was some forceps gripping her cornea and "flopping" it back into place. The forceps disappeared and into view came a white foam wedge on a stick. Some wetting solution (probably saline) was applied to her eye and the surgeon used the little foam wedge to smooth out the cornea, so it sat neatly and symetrically in the area from which it was recently removed. When I asked the doctor about this part later, he mentioned he was making sure it fit into the "gutter". Imagine a dome, now slice off the top and set aside. On the round area on the top of the remaining base, remove some material, but not from the edge. When the top of the dome is replaced, it will want to settle into the very shallow "cup" made by the removal of the material. Settling the top of the cornea onto the base of the cornea and tucking in and smoothing any bumps or wrinkles or irregularities was a critical part of the process, since this is the very window through which the light must pass and bend on it's way to the retina. A hand made mistake here negates all the technical benefits of the procedure. This is one area where the human skill of the doctor's steady hand and good vision (he's a customer of his own service, going on five years) pays off.

Once he was satisfied with the result, a clear solution was poured into her eye and also a creamy white solution. Then a large light blue jelly-like thing was placed over the whole iris. I learned later this is a contact lens. It's purpose is like a bandage, to physically stabilize the wound. When we return tomorrow for the five minute followup, the doctor will remove it.

The next step was the removal of the retractors :aaahhh: and the removal of the clear surgical tape :relief:. The process was repeated with the other eye. The only difference was I could not see the flashes as well, and during the clean up there was a little blood. I later learned it was from a small cut on the eyelid from those damned retractors. The amount of blood was miniscule, not enough to form a whole drip. But when my wife's eye is filling a 24" television monitor, I did get a little Clockwork Orange vibe. She's really okay, though.

In ten minutes it was all over. She sat up, shook the doctors hand and walked out in to the "recovery room". We sat together and talked for about ten minutes. She said she could see better already. Her eyes looked really rough, like crying or tired or drunk or smoked out all together. But with all that hardware (and medicine) in there, there was good reason. She said it was a little foggy, but not unfocused. Success! The doctor came in after a few minutes, asked how she felt, do we have questions, etc. He asked her her to sit at a vision microscope an he checked his work. He pronounced her fit to leave, and we did.

We had lunch on the way home, and the Tylenol was making her sleepy, so we went home. I could tell the medicine in her eyes was beginning to wear off, she said they were stinging (NO rubbing!!). I helped tuck her in on the couch and helped her with her first round of eye drops, gave her the phone and the remote for the tv (to LISTEN ONLY to her soap opera) and went back to work. I did get a call an hour or so later, and we decided that another pain pill was a good idea. Rest is important, and pain inhibits rest.

We have a regimen of eye drops every hour it seems for the next thirty days, and the healing will continue for three months. She can expect gradual improvement during that time, over and above the dramatic improvement she's seen already. On the way home, while the drugs were still soothing her eyes, she said "I can't believe I'm not wearing glasses." Her vision, in the first minutes after surgery, was comparable to her corrected vision. I think a case for "miracle" could be made.

As things progress, I'll keep you updated if there's anything dramatic to report. But after today's success the only thing dramatic worth reporting would be negative. Possible, of course, but if everything goes as planned, the only thing to happen will be the donation of a couple of pairs of glasses to the local Goodwill.