Thankful for good Results

Mr. Big Blue Eyes, our seven year old son Arik, completed his fourth surgery for Strabismus last week at UCLA Medical Center. We are very thankful for the positive result and hopeful that this is his last operation. Thank you to all who have prayed and stood with us during this time.

Strabismus is thought to be a neurological condition. It affects how the eyes track with one another. From infancy it was obvious that Arik had a problem. And when the non-invasive remedies all failed we were faced with surgery. The procedure involves detaching and re-attaching muscles that control specific eye movement to try and compensate for whatever the brain is having problems with. Like adjusting a clutch with too much play (or too little), a skilled surgeon can reposition muscles to loosen tension or take up slack as needed. The goal is to bring the eyes in perfect alignment.

But it's not an exact science. The best time to correct Strabismus is when the brain is still developing. The measurements that guide surgery, however, are dependent on the accuracy of a child’s responses to detailed questions while their looking at letters, moving lights, and 3D objects through various prisms and contraptions out of a sci-fi movie. Assuming these are correct, once in the operating room the surgeon uses something not too different than calipers to get the measurements right.

In Arik’s case his first surgery, done when he was toddler, went pretty well. There was a definite improvement, but more was needed. The second surgery was successful in getting further improvement in his horizontal alignment, but there was one little problem; Arik now had double vision! By the grace of God it didn’t seem to bother him too much, even playing T-ball and soccer. But it wasn’t something anyone wanted him to live with.

The third surgery, in July, was intended to reverse this obvious problem. It didn’t. Mom and Dad were heart broken. Even Arik’s surgeon, Dr. Rosenbaum, the chief of Pediatric Ophthalmology at UCLA, a man of great skill and not prone to showing much emotion, was obviously concerned. As for Arik, well, he showed everyone how to manage adversity - with optimism and resilience. What a trooper. Through it all he’s never complained or shown any wavering with tough decisions. This last surgery, when the anesthesiologist came in to give him a tranquilizer he refused it, assuring her that he wasn’t nervous. He wasn’t.

While his eyes are still not perfectly aligned there’s a big improvement. Arik sees double only sporadically during certain eye movements. According to Dr. Rosenbaum his eyes are within one degree of normalcy and well within the brain’s ability to adjust. We continue to pray and hope for the best. Arik’s next appointment is in December. In the meantime, we’re thankful for God’s grace and love through it all.