INSIDE ODIEHOG'S HEAD

OPTCOM DOCS

My goal here is to introduce myself and offer some Optometric "education" for those of you interested. I write a bi-monthly column in a local "good news" magazine and will be offering these articles as public information. I have a private practice of optometry located just north of Clutch City (Houston) and have been an "eyeball mechanic" for 25 years (YIKES!).

Before we go any further, check out my new grandson…just hangin' out with Big Bird…

@15 months

"Good mornin' Granna…can I get a haircut?" @16 months

My Bi-Monthly Columns

Now for some fun…you have all seen those 3-D pictures that you have to stare at for three weeks to see the image?…………try these: (More to come) Solve the Magic Eye

OK, it's time to tell a story. This was the most incredible thing that I have witnessed, in regard to lost contact lenses, and it happened just a year out of school. I was stationed at March AFB Regional Hospital and an 18 year old female presented for a new CL. She had lost one a couple days prior. I did my exam and found nothing unusual, just no lens on her right eye. She had been a PMMA wearer for about 5 years. (This was 1975) During the exam she asked me if I would look under her right eyelid for a PREVIOUS lens that she had lost 22 months ago! At that time she was sure it was under her lid and had gone to the ER, etc, where they flushed and prodded and eventually reassured her that it must have fallen out. But every now and again she would "feel something" under that lid. That went on for nearly two years. I figured "no way" is that lens still there, but I'll appease her and take a quick look. Well, I never saw a lens, but rather a little excess tissue high in the superior fornix. Could it be? I walked her over to one of the OMD's offices and told him the story and he agreed to take a look. When he saw the rounded, smooth tissue he proceeded to anesthetize the lid, double evert, and make a small incision. Three seconds later, out popped a contact lens coated with a real pleasant looking goo.

I had a new lens on her in a few days and she went about her business. A granuloma had formed around this foreign body (CL) and had "protected" her eye for 22 months. I still have this lens, and never cleaned it. Thought maybe someday I'd write a story about this adventure...guess I just did...

Take a look!

For fellow docs: I have gradually accumulated a number of interesting photographs from my patient base, and thought I would share them with colleagues (or anyone interested). All photos come from my Topcon retinal camera, and scanned with Logitech's Scanman Color.

1. I thought this little patch of medullated nerve fibers was rather unique.
2. This was an extremely interesting case of a 40 yo/wm who presented with rather sudden loss of vision in his right eye. This photo was taken about a month prior to the vision loss. This photo was taken the evening of his presentation with symptoms. The diagnosis was neuroretinitis with macular edema, of unknown etiology. This most recent photo was taken about 10 months after the initial presentation. Acuity was 20/20 with slight loss of color perception, especially in the yellow-green area.
3. This gentleman had noticed a loss of peripheral vision in his temporal field from around 4:00 to 5:30, and from 90 to 30 degrees from central. Confrontation and automated fields concurred. A tilted disc with moderate to high myopia and resultant visual field defect was the diagnosis.
4. A more or less classic case of toxo.
5. This poor kid had been run through the mill more than once (and again by me). Very interesting case of pseudo-RP.
6. A dear patient who had fought the diabetic battle for years. This photo was taken one year prior to her death. She was only 46.
7. Very intriguing case of low-tension glaucoma. The optic nerve head appearance of either eye has not changed over several years. Right disc Left disc IOP readings have been consistently low and stable, ranging from 9 to 13. This is the most recent full threshold grayscale image of her right eye. And left eye. She has been on Betagan for about a year without much affect on the already low pressure.

• A few other EYE pages of interest:
  • TLC The Laser Center
  • American Optometric Association (AOA)
• Some other web sites you might find interesting (mostly local):
  • Humble Area Homepage
  • Humble/Kingwood Area Online Directory
  • Houston Chronicle
  • Houston "Real-time" Traffic Map
  • Intellicast-National & Local Weather
  • Texas Lottery Information
  • The Library of Congress

• You are visitor number since November 24, 1996
• This page was last updated on June 14, 2005

If you have a question about your eyes, or a comment concerning any of my articles:

You can reach me by e-mail at: odiehog@earthlink.net