Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Congenital Glaucoma

Just over a month ago Christian was diagnosed with Congenital Glaucoma. For several weeks he'd been having some redness and swelling to his left eye, so I finallly decided to take him to the doctor.
(I posted this picture a while ago and under it made a comment about how I couldn't get him to open his eyes. It all makes sense now. Poor fella.)

I'm sure you're wondering, "What the heck is Congenital Glaucoma?" Well, when Christian was born two parts of his eyes that were suppose to separate, didn't. Because they didn't, the fluid the eye makes can not drain. So, instead it builds up causing the eyes to swell and the pressure to increase. If the pressure keeps building up, the optic nerve (the nerve in the back of the eye) gets damaged, eventually leading to blindness. Fortunately, the prognosis is good and with surgery our little man should have full functioning vision.
(This is how he smiles most of the time. With his eyes closed)
The last month has been rough though. Christian seems like a different baby. My heart aches for him. When we go outside, his eyes are ALWAYS closed (the increase in pressure makes him extremely sensitive to light). When I lay him down to play, he only keeps his eyes open for a short time, and some mornings he won't open his eyes for hours. He doesn't stay awake for long periods of time, I think his eyes start to bother him, so he just closes them and goes to sleep. His eyes are cloudy and he always looks tired.
The medications he's on to help only seemed to be making him worse, so last week I took him back to his doctor. He confirmed my suspicions (the pressure in the eye should range between 12 and 22. Christians' was 41 in his right eye and 50 in his left) and had us move his scheduled surgery up to this Thursday. I am nervous about sending my little boy into surgery but I'm also feeling extremely blessed there is a cure, relieved he won't have to suffer much longer, and grateful for technology and doctors who can heal him.

Please keep our little one in your prayers this Thursday.

18 comments:

  1. OH I will send my best thoughts, love and prayers. I know all will go fine and your baby will be gleefully seeing everything normally so SOON! Brave little sweetie.

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  2. Awwww Whitney he is so very precious and I will definitely be thinking about you guys and sending all my love and prayers for him on Thursday. I'm so glad you're getting this taken care of early and he'll be so grateful later in life. Sweetest boys!!!

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  3. Most definitely praying for your baby, you, and your family!

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  4. So sorry to hear about your little boys condition, but glad it can be fixed and made all better. My thoughts and prayers will be with you and your family.

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  5. Christian is in our prayers and has been for awhile. He's lucky to have such an amazing mom/nurse to watch out for him and take good care of him. Love you lots:)

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  6. I will for sure be praying for all of you. Make sure to call or text. Love you all.

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  7. primary congenital glaucoma is present at birth. It is usually diagnosed at birth or shortly thereafter, and most cases are diagnosed during the first year of life. However, sometimes, its symptoms are not recognized until later in infancy or into early childhood.

    If you are suffering from narrow angle glaucoma, intraocular hypertension, or other eye related diseases, Buy Latisse. Its very effective

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  8. Glad to hear the surgery went well! We have been definitely praying for you guys!

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  9. WHIT!! I am here!! I have been here these last few months just loving your blog and stories and of course those cute boys! We havent had a computer since the end of Nov. but I have been following along on my phone but it wouldn't let me comment on your blog. It was soo sad. But not near as sad as what your poor little fellow has been through and still going through :( I hope you guys have a beautiful Easter with those sweet babes. Love you TONS xoxo

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  10. There are many types of eye conditions in which people can get cloudy vision and sometime it can be resulted in eye loss. Glaucoma and cataract can damage a lot to eye.

    what is glaucoma ?

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