To work and read again are the two things that Carla du Plessis aged 20 is looking forward to the most after her eye surgery on the 2nd of October 2020.
Carla who has likely been living with diabetes from around the age of 7 recently underwent a procedure on her right eye that may allow her to once again live an independent life and be able to work and read.
As a result of diabetic retinopathy Carla’s left eye had recently reached a point where surgical intervention would not assist in returning vision to the eye. Diabetic retinopathy is a complication associated with diabetes that causes damage to the blood vessels of the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye (retina).
In what her mom Corne describes as nothing more than a miracle, a group of doctors together with Busamed Lowveld Private Hospital stood together to make the procedure possible for Carla without any cost to her and her family.
Earlier this year Carla lived a normal life and was not dependant on others for assistance, but that all changed in May.
Carla became very ill for about 4 months and as a result of the pressure on her left eye, they made an appointment with Dr Johan Eksteen. As the family does not have medical aid, they were referred to a local state hospital for intervention but unfortunately, the vision in her left eye could not be saved.
When the same thing started to happen with the right eye, they were placed on a waiting list to be treated in a state facility based in Gauteng.
In the last week of September, Carla experienced shooting pain in her right eye and they sought advice from Dr Eksteen.
The required operation could not wait much longer than another few days of waiting may result in complete vision loss. This is when Dr Eksteen contacted his colleague’s Dr Doncaster (Anaesthetist) and Dr Niemandt (Retinal specialist in Ophthalmology) as well as Busamed Lowveld Private Hospital. All agreed to do the surgery at no cost to the family.
Due to high blood sugar and high blood pressure related to her diabetes and experienced over time, the blood vessels at the back of her eye were damaged. The blood vessels became weaker and fluid began to leak onto her eye.
The 45-minute procedure removed the blood and fluid from behind the eye and through the use of laser technology the leaking blood vessels were sealed.
Before the procedure, Carla only experienced around 10% vision in her right eye. The follow-up scans a few days after her procedure indicated that the eye was healing well, and the doctors are optimistic about her recovery and hopeful to eventually achieve 80 % vision.
There is however the possibility that more surgery will be needed, and she will probably require cataract surgery within the next two to three years. But for now, her eye just needs to heal and adapt to the glasses she will receive. An important part of her recovery and health will be to manage her diabetes going forward.
Carla and her family expressed their sincere gratitude to the doctors and hospital for the assistance that they received. Carla’s dream is to become a school teacher and she is hopeful that she can focus on her career again.
