I had a chance yesterday to benefit from new modern technology. Jenny had eye surgery at five years old to correct a problem -- back then, it was a very invasive process. I had 162 "shots" at 380 milliwatts for 30 milliseconds each, delivered by a 3x3 matrix argon laser "gun" to spotweld a retinal tear. Love the precision!
The release form you sign says "there may be a slight amount of pain". That was certainly true, in fact, they overdelivered on that one! I was quite relieved when the final shot had been fired, and I certainly am not eager to repeat the experiment soon.
On the other hand, I was quite lucky compared to some other friends. One good friend recently endured a fully detached retinal event, while enbound for a trek in Africa. It happened on a street, inexplicably, in London. Needless to say, their trip was interrupted, but so was his life, for the next six months, as he struggles to regain full eyesight. And he is lucky as well. He is regaining his sight.
Along the way, via the too lengthy diagnostic process -- four visits to four different docs at four facilities, escalating the specialties as we went -- I was entranced by the OCT machines that could build a "depth profile" of the layers of cells underneath the retina. This fabulous technology is an outgrowth of recent work at the MIT Media Lab, plus early work by Marvin Minsky at Harvard nearly fifty years ago. It is part sonar, part time-domain reflectometry, and way cool for its diagnostic ability for macular degenrative disease and macular "pucker", both of which I am currently experiencing as well.
Fearsome words to some, including me, but tell you what -- they're just aging issues, and as the doc said, "you are balding too, and you don't call that an illness"...
So, recuperating today -- slept an amazing twelve or thirteen hours, but certainly privileged.
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