2 year old update: Izzy had an eye doctor appointment on 6/23/23 (3 months post-op) to check in & discuss next steps. As of now, NO next steps are necessary!!! The ophthalmologist said that Izzy’s alignment has been completely corrected & she doesn’t appear to have any current vision concerns, so no need for glasses at this time! Next appointment is in December!
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Surgery update: On March 2nd, 2023, Izzy had her pre-op screening. We met with various staff members to go over “what to expect” and the child life specialist provided us with caps and an anesthesia mask to practice with at home.
On March 13th, Izzy had her pre-op lab draws to make sure she could safely undergo anesthesia. All checked out & her endocrinologist had no concerns.
On March 23rd, Izzy had her bilateral eye surgery to tighten her muscles and fix her strabismus. Izzy has severe separation & hospital anxiety so the original plan was for me to go back with her while they gave her the anesthesia. However, when we got to the appointment, the anesthesiologist told me I was not allowed due to Covid protocol. Luckily, thanks to a pre-anesthesia sedation medication that they did allow me to administer to her, there were no tears when they wheeled her away. With one hand, Izzy held tightly onto the child life specialist’s finger and with the other, she wrapped her puppy dog in close. Sterling and I were updated during her surgery and then met with the doctor afterwards who told us that everything went great! 💛
Izzy’s recovery was way better than expected! The first day she was a bit puffy and had some discharge, but she did not seem bothered. We had to give her eye drops, which she wasn’t a fan of, but she never messed with her eyes or itched them. The corners appeared bloodshot, but that went away in the next few days. Izzy was back to her normal self in no time, and within 48 hours of surgery, Sterling and I could already notice a difference in her eyes and their alignment! 👀
On March 27th, Izzy went back for her post-op appointment. Her doctor confirmed that the surgery was a success and we will have a follow up in 3 months for next steps!
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On January 20th, 2023, Izzy had a follow-up eye doctor appointment. Unfortunately, what Izzy was originally diagnosed with (pseudoesotropia) is not our main concern anymore. With a quick light test, we learned that Izzy’s vision is being affected by something called “strabismus” and “alternating esotropia with V pattern”, where the eyes don’t look in the same direction at the same time. While Izzy’s eyes stay straight when she’s looking straight, her issues come when she looks to the sides. With this, she will have to have eye surgery in both eyes to tighten and strengthen her muscles. The surgery is called “eye inferior oblique myectomy”, and while there are risks that come with this surgery, the doctor has assured us that the chances of any complications are extremely low. Although having this surgery increases the likelihood for another eye surgery down the road, we were told that the younger the child is, the better, and the benefits from the surgery improving her vision outweigh any concerns. Izzy will be put under with anesthesia for this, but it should be a quick and easy procedure, and after they finish observing her, we will get to take her home with us that same day. Surgery is scheduled for March 23rd with pre-op testing two weeks before. Also, because Izzy was not wanting anything to do with her eye exam, the doctor will check everything out, including her bilateral astigmatism, when she is sedated. Below is a photo for reference. Don’t mind her cute but very messy face & hairdo. 😘
Also, s/o to our neurologist who suspected strabismus prior to her first eye appointment and made the initial referral to see ophthalmology. 🧠
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1 year old update: Izzy saw the eye doctor for the first time in March after a referral was made by her neurologist. Ultimately, Izzy was diagnosed with pseudoesotropia, which is when the alignment of the eyes is straight, but they appear cross-eyed due to a prominent epicanthal fold. An epicanthal fold is a skin fold of the upper eyelid covering the inner corner of the eye due to a widened bridge of the nose. This makes a baby appear cross-eyed because the skin covers the inner whites. This should eventually correct itself as she grows bigger and her nose grows out. Izzy has astigmatism in both eyes, but does not need glasses at this time. The blood vessels behind her eyes are “wavy”, which is atypical, but her ophthalmologist has no concerns of this affecting her. And her optic nerves are working just as they’re supposed to! She is also farsighted, but we learned that all children her age *should* be! She is scheduled to go back in 1 year unless we see the need for another check sooner.
