Laser Eye Surgery

Retinopathy of Prematurity

Rush Presbyterian- St. Luke's

Chicago, IL

October 1999

All preterm babies are at risk for Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP), with low birth weights being a second high risk factor. Kellisa was both and was diagnosed with ROP. The ophthalmologist was following Kellisa closely as her eyes developed.

Out of everything Kellisa went through in her first six months of life, her eye exams were by far the most brutal, both for her and her parents. Imagine 3-4 people struggling to hold down a sickly baby less than five pounds as she fought with everything she had as the doctor pried her eyes wide open as they bulged from their sockets. A device straight from a medieval torture device museum was used to lock the eyes in the open position. I still have nightmares of the banshee wails that came from her oxygen starved, underdeveloped lungs and there was nothing I could do but hold her down with all my strength.

Above: NOT Kellisa

My fatherly instinct was telling me to push (hit) the doctor and run out of the hospital with Kellisa every time she went through this exam. There’s only one reason why I never committed an assault and escaped with Kellisa. When Kellisa was first diagnosed with ROP, we were told that she would go blind if it progressed unchecked.  

The blood vessels in the eyes finish growing in the last few weeks before a full term birth. ROP is when the blood vessels grow in a disorganized way after a premature birth. In rare instances, the ROP can resolve itself. As this disorganized growth progresses, it will cause the retina to detach leading to blindness by 6 months.

ROP is defined with 5 stages. The first two stages do not lead to blindness. Stage 3 is when the blood vessels attempt to grow into an area without vessels. This will cause a buildup of oxygen and blood leading to detaching the retina. Stage 4 is when the retina starts to detach. Stage 5 is total retinal detachment which will cause substantial or total vision loss.

When Kellisa’s left eye reached stage 3 and her right eye entered stage 4, we were advised that laser surgery was the only choice for Kellisa. A laser is used to burn the ends of the blood vessels to stop their attempt at growth. Before Kellisa was 5 months old, we signed the parent consent forms for Kellisa’s 5^th surgery.

The surgery was a success as it stopped the ROP. Because Kellisa’s blood vessels never grew to the outer ends of her eyes, Kellisa doesn’t have any peripheral vision.

Stevie Wonder is probably the most famous person who suffers from ROP.

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Eye Muscle Surgery

Wolfsons Children's Hospital

Jacksonville, FL

August 2002

Kellisa would have her second laser eye surgery to correct the alignment of her eyes. Her eyes had become crossed. We tried to fix the problem without surgery by patching her eyes; unfortunately this attempt did not work. Without surgery, one of Kellisa’s eyes would become dominant and the other eye would lose its ability to see as her brain would only use the best eye. The doctor would use the laser to adjust Kellisa's eye muscles so her eyes would be in alignment.

This would be Kellisa’s 8^th surgery and we don’t have any pictures to share. However, two images are forever burned in my darkest nightmares. The first is the blood tears that were flowing from Kellisa’s eyes when we first entered her post-op room. The second and worst is the expression on her face. She didn’t need to say a word; it was clear that she was asking her parents, “Why and how could you do this to me?”