Hello, my name is Brenda,

I am 54 years old and I wear a prosthesis and have since 1988 at which time I lost my eye due to an infection.  Several attempts were made to save the eye but the trauma done during the procedure to drain the infection cause the eye to eventually die. 

I really couldn't be upset over loosing the eye because my initial injury was when I was in the first grade and I was hit with a rock.  Ever since the injury I had had some type of problem with the eye. Either an infection or something else was happening and my eye stayed very red. 

I was relieve after the enucleation since I no longer had to deal with the red eye.  I say this because I actually didn't give up that much sight.  Due to the rock injury I could only see light in the left corner of the eye, so I was fairly use to having sight in one eye.


In March of 1988, Dr. Chris Fleming in Memphis did the enucleation and I was sent home to recover and get ready to be fitted for my new prosthesis.

I could hardly wait to get my new eye!  But, the ocularist that I went to didn't provide a good fit and I felt like a monster! I wanted to run and hide or even put the patch back on.  However, I finally realized it didn't look that bad, but I was not satisfied with the way I looked.

More recently, Bob Thomas of Memphis, Tennessee made me a prosthesis that looks just like my other eye and you can't tell which is the prosthesis from my real eye.

I have had the Bio-eye (hydroxyapatite) integrated motility implant placed in my orbit with the new titanium peg and my eye movement is much improved. 

I hope that I am around long enough to be fitted with the "Bionic Eye" that you can actually see out of...ha!":)...it is being worked on I understand! :)

Please feel free to write to me and ask me any questions or share anything that you have on your mind about  wearing your prosthesis.

I was so glad to find this support site online. I just accidentally came across it and so very happy that I did.

Thank you,  

Brenda

 

Return to Patient's Stories