Everything with my eyes is great.  I continue annual exams which include a look at the graft and it has been completely quiet.  My allergies kick in occasionally but I manage those with Allegra.

I’ve been doing Tobradex (a combination of tobramycin and dexamethasone) prior to influenza vaccines and COVID shots, but I’ve recently learned that this may not be required?   I’m planning to ask my doctor soon.  If it’s not, I’ll update the posts I have on here about using it.

I spend a lot of time hiking, mountain biking and kayaking with my wife. 

I asked Dr. Koffler what care I needed to take related to my graft and the Shingrix shot.  They suggested that Tobradex – same as I use for Influenza vaccines – would be fine and would cover both.

After first frost, I’m going to get immunotherapy treatments. Hoping it will be tablets or under-the-tongue type, but will need to get tested. I’m waiting because it requires that you have 5-7 days free from antihistamines, and right now, that’s a non-starter. After first frost, ragweed pollen will plummet.

I’ve become more formalized in my contact lens swaps… using my phone appointments reminder to time them and track notes about how they feel at several phases.

Otherwise… eyes are great!

I recently got a Kindle paperwhite…and I’d highly recommend that for Keratoconus patients! You can zoom up on most content and the contrast is amazing. The battery lasts forever and the choices of books is huge.  I wish I’d had this when my Karatoconus was really bad.

You can get yours here.

My graft is quiet and my eye pressure and corneal thickness are fine.  Dr. Holland reminded me of what to look for – light sensitivity and redness in the left eye only.  I watch it like a hawk.  He said I’m out of the major rejection period, but to always assume rejection when symptoms emerge “until proven otherwise.”

I’m to keep using Restasis 2x per day (indefinitely) … I learn a bit more each visit about how beneficial these drops are to preventing rejection.  Expensive but worth it, and better than steroids for someone like me who responds to them with increased eye pressure.

No more appointments for 1 year unless needed.

I have been hoping to make the transition to “regular” contacts and so have been testing a series provided to me by my fitter.  Two of the types of lenses were “too tight” meaning that they did not move around the eye enough and were difficult to get out.

It seems that during one of the tests, where the lens was sticking in one place through the day, I caused an microscopic abrasion on my cornea.  I had started feeling a persistent burning/lash sensation on my graft and, being a hyper-vigilant paranoid patient, went in to see Dr. Koffler.  He applied florescence and at first didn’t see anything. But after a few moments he found a minor abrasion in the middle of the grafted cornea and concluded this was the source of my discomfort. The graft looked fine, by the way.

I took a break from the lenses, applied Muro 128 and have settled back into using the “custom” 3-month lenses I was originally using, but with an updated prescription.

Everything is fine now as we move into the holidays.

A short post today.  With the sutures coming out slowly over time, it’s always been my choice to put off getting a new eyeglasses prescription.

With lenses being so expensive, and insurance limitations, it hardly made sense to pay for a new left lens every few months as my vision (astigmatism) was altered by the process.  I was already tweaking expensive contacts to follow the “suture roulette”, so I chose to hold off on the glasses.

Well, with all sutures out and a month of stabilization, I’ve finally got new lenses for my Oakley glasses.  It’s amazing to have spectacles that correct nearly as well as my contacts – and liberating.  I can now feel more confident on driving holidays where I might find myself at the wheel longer than my lens wear time allows.  And I can easily drive should a mid-night emergency happen.

With allergies wreaking havoc on both eyes this Fall, I may choose to wear the glasses more often, allowing me to use eye drop antihistamines anytime I need them, avoiding the drowsiness that comes with their oral equivalent.

I cannot remember when I last had glasses that worked so well – but I’d guess it’s been nearly 15 years.

So, yet another little thing that the DALK surgery has brought me, more than two years later.

The image below shows me participating in the Montpelier Archaeology Team in Virginia as a metal detector expert.  Despite dusty conditions and wind, I never had a single issue with my eyes.