April 28, 2006
Myopia of – 6 in and astigmatism of –3.5 in each eye. That’s how powerful my eyes were. At age 15 and barely in Class 10 I was one of the youngest kids to wear contact lens. Semi soft lens were a painful experience then and I had to go through the agony of a foreign body sensation every time there was dust. And a lot of people tried to dissuade me from contact lens. But I was adamant and continued wearing it. It meant freedom, convenience, independence and most of all confidence.
Used semi soft lens for almost three years when my doctor introduced toric lenses (soft lens). These were a Godsend for people with high cylindrical power (astigmatism) and I had never been so relieved before. Used these without any hassles for three years more. Meanwhile I graduated out of college and it was time to leave for Mumbai to begin work as a management trainee at Maersk.
Work at Mumbai meant being stuck to my chair for nearly 10-12 hours a day and very rarely taking my eyes off the PC. That’s when trouble started brewing. I had stinging pain in my eyes al the time and could not tolerate the contact lens any more. The ophthalmologist said I was allergic to contact lens and asked me to refrain from using it. The AC and PC had done a lot of damage to my eyes. It’s called the computer eye syndrome and an occupational hazard for all people staring into the phosphorescence of a monitor.
For two years I wore glasses after experiencing the freedom of contact lens for 6 years prior. Not trying to sound vain I can say that it can make a lot of difference to one’s freedom and most of all self esteem. Amidst all this I was getting more and more enthusiastic of a wonder procedure called LASIK (Laser Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis). It uses LASER lights to get rid of one’s power.
When in Bangalore we consulted the doctor who asked us to do some routine tests. The first one was called pachymetry. This one uses ultrasound to determine the thickness of the cornea. Anesthetic eye drops are administered and an instrument touches the surface of the eye that measures the thickness of the cornea. The second one is called a corneal topography. Here illuminated rings of light are projected into the corneal surface and any sorts of distortions are detected. I went through these tests faithfully. My doctor gave the go ahead and I was now eager.
Then my normally over cautious dad said that we should have a second opinion and I thought it was only fair when it comes to sensitive organs like eyes and we traced another LASIK expert. I went through the rigmarole of all the tests again. The doctor after reading my reports ‘did not want to take the risk.’ He said my cornea was 465 microns at the lowest point. Now LASIK means eliminating some amount of corneal tissue. And there is a minimal amount that you require. Unfortunately my power was too high for the minimal tissue to be left. He was right. It was a potential risk. But we had not heard this before.
Then we went to a third doctor. Again I did all the tests. And the third doctor also said that he ‘did not want to take the risk.’ Now I began to get disappointed. I did not want to carry those thick glasses on my nose all the time. Then we decided to go to Sankara Nethralaya , a reputed eye clinic in Chennai. So we fixed up the appointment and even booked tickets. Then the doctor there after hearing about my report again expressed doubt over the entire thing. Then we instinctively knew that even they ‘would not take the risk’ again.
By now frustration reflected in my choked voice and dad and me began researching vigorously. Dad in his quest for intensity found that Wavefront guided Allegretto 400 Hz technology was the latest in LASIK technology in the world. It saved the most amount of corneal tissue and was highly precision guided. And meanwhile he contacted the dealer of Allegretto machines based in India and we found out the clinics that had that installation. And then we were told that Shroff eye clinic in Mumbai only had this sophisticated equipment and we emailed all the reports to them. It was only natural not to expect the country’s top eye doctors to answer queries on email. But the Shroffs proved us pleasantly wrong. All our questions were answered in immaculate detail. By now we were so well read on the subject that we used a lot of jargon freely.
In between all this we went to the city’s top LASIK doctor and went through all the tests again. It was the fifth time and I was tired. After a lot of speculation the doctor expressed that it could be done but there could be some risk. This did not instill confidence.
The Shroffs – Doctor Anand and Safala Shroff had given us so much hope that we decided that we go there for the surgery. I could one Friday off and went there with dad and mom. Again I went through the tests. This time I could tell what the results would be like. Though I had pinned so much hope on this my parents had prepared me to expect the worst. Which is only fair. Doctor proved it to us that it was possible and I was relieved. But then nothing could be said till the next day.
It was the big day. We came in at 1130 and as I sat there I told a silent prayer that it worked. Then we were taken to the OT and some anesthetic eye drops were administered. Then I changed to the operation gown and went in. Then as I lay with a whole bunch of highly sophisticated equipment above my head my eyes were strapped open with some kind of tape. Then came the big moment. An incision was made to remove the flap. Dr. Anand Shroff then guided the LASER beam over my right eye. I saw all sorts of coloured lights and then everything went black. Hurray it was 100 % corrected now! Before I could panic on the black out doctor told me it was normal. The same procedure was now replicated for the left eye. I just could not believe it. It took all of 3 minutes. Meanwhile this entire procedure was being witnessed by my parents on a screen outside. Then in totally filmy style I opened my eyes and I could ‘see’ without glasses. An unforgettable moment that one.
I walked out and wanted to hug my parents. But then my eyes were too soar to risk anything. We were given a list of post operative instructions and packed off. I was wearing one of those huge dark glasses a la Karunanidhi’s. We went to the hotel in an auto rickshaw. My vision was extremely hazy and the sunlight irritated me. Back at the hotel room the anesthesia began to wear off and the pain started. Eye drops had to be put every one hour and it was sheer agony. There was intense stinging pain and constant watering and I could hardly open my eyes. This however ended by night and I slept well that night having bright dreams even with the dark glasses on.
The next day I woke up feeling almost normal. It was the first time in my life I woke up to clear vision. It was an emphatic moment. And now the world looks like a much better place. It is freedom, independence and confidence. It is looking at the world not from behind something called ‘glasses’. I can only be thankful to the wonder called ‘science’.
