360 degree trabeculotomy success

Spoiler alert: the EUA to assess Aaron's eyes following the 360 degree trabeculotomy for his congenital glaucoma had really good results. Normal intraocular pressure in both eyes. Healthy optic nerve. Good looking corneas and pupils. Best. News. Ever.

No cloudy corneas for this kid

Once again we had a great experience at the Richard Desmond Children's Eye Centre at Moorfields. A nurse called the day before with fasting instructions and Aaron decided he wanted 4.5 ounces of milk at 2 am and another 4 ounces at 5 am so he started the day with plenty of fuel. His breakfast cutoff was 7:30 am and he woke up at 7:28 (probably exhausted after all those night feeds). Adam rushed Aaron downstairs and strapped him in the highchair and I fed him a pot of porridge and then a fromage frais before he even knew what was happening. We finished at 7:33. Good lord. Little man then drank almost 7 ounces of expressed breast milk at 9:30. That's a lot of info but for those who know Aaron well, you know that this is SO MUCH FOOD for someone who often barely wants 15 ounces of milk in a day.

Aaron spent the ride up to London looking out the train windows and when we got to Moorfields at midday, he played happily with the copious toys available at RDCEC. He didn't seem that bothered about fasting, which was a relief! I guess it's partly due to his morning feast and also, last time we went in he was five months old and breastfeeding every two hours. The schedule (I use that term loosely) we have him on now, he'd really only missed his lunchtime solids.

Our wonderful doctor, Mr. Brookes, came out to explain the EUA procedure and have us sign the necessary forms. He told us Aaron won't remember any of this when he's older (which makes sense - I don't have memories before age 3??) and that he was expecting good results. Mr. Brookes is always calm and patient and in turn it puts us at ease as well.

The anaesthetists came to speak with us around 13:15 and agreed we didn't need to sedate Aaron before his cannula went in, which was good news. The lead anaesthetist pointed out that I had glitter all over my face?! 'Like that guy from Twilight when he goes in the sun?' Gah. No idea why I was covered in glitter but the comic relief helped as our next stop was the operating theatre to get Aaron knocked out for the EUA. They found the vein really fast in his right foot and warned us he'd look like he was awake but he'd really be asleep. Even with the warning I was shocked to see Aaron so out of it, all the light gone from his mischievous little eyes.

Adam and I went to get a coffee and a sandwich and by the time we got back upstairs (15-20 mins later?), Aaron was awake-ish and in recovery, swaddled in a blanket and being lovingly cradled by one of the Moorfields team. He gulped down 6 ounces of milk and desperately wanted to crawl around but was like a little drunk man and kept falling over (we had him in the cot at this point, not on the floor).

Mr. Brookes came out in between his other surgeries to give us the report on Aaron. The 360 degree trabeculotomy had done it's job, Aaron's intraocular pressures were in the normal range (normal ranges from 12-22 mmHg) and his eyes were healthy. And no more drops! Amen to that.

We go back in a couple of months to assess how Aaron's vision is developing, whether he needs glasses, patching, etc. and to measure his intraocular pressures. Even though Aaron's prognosis is so good, congenital glaucoma is for life and he will always have to have checkups. Adam and I will need to get checked for glaucoma eventually too and apparently, since Aaron has congenital glaucoma, our eye exams will be free?! Need to check on the details of this.

At any rate, we are super happy as the results of the 360 degree trabeculotomy are far better than we could have ever dreamed. Why and how on earth Aaron ever managed to develop congenital glaucoma we will never know but we feel incredibly blessed to have been referred to Mr. Brookes and RDCEC.