Part 2 of 2
This article originally appeared in the spring/summer issue of InSight Magazine, a publication of Bosma Enterprises. Last week we discussed various eye diseases; this week’s post features two siblings who were given the same diagnoses, but experienced different outcomes.
Amy and CJ are siblings, and they both have diabetic retinopathy. Amy, who lives in Detroit, first noticed a black “splotch” as she described it, in the center of her vision. She immediately went to her eye doctor who sent her to a specialist. There, it was decided to begin treatment. They started with several laser treatments. These treatments were designed to remove extra blood vessels that were forming because of the retinopathy. “The lasers failed to correct the long-term problem,” Amy said. She decided to have surgery. It was successful fixing her vision loss, and she’s had few complications since.
Amy’s brother, CJ, who is employed at Bosma Enterprises, has had a very different experience with diabetic retinopathy. He discovered problems with his vision in one eye and he underwent the same treatment regimen as his sister. However, his eye did not heal properly, causing blindness. He started to lose vision in his other eye and sought the counsel of a specialist at Johns Hopkins, who recommended the same course of treatment he had undergone previously. Unfortunately, CJ experienced the same complications. Today, he only has light perception.
Two employees. One disease.
Brian knew from a very young age he was losing his eyesight. He has retinitis pigmentosa (RP). His vision was stable through his childhood. From kindergarten to fifth grade, Brian attended the Indiana School for the Blind and Visually Impaired and finished at Brownsburg Community School Corporation. He was a pretty normal kid. He rode a bicycle, played sports and did the things that other kids did. At the age of 18, he started to notice that reading print and the computer screen weren’t as clear as they used to be. He started bumping into things a little more often. Over the course of about two to three years, his vision deteriorated to where it is now, with just light perception. Brian was able to continue through high school and got his bachelor’s from Purdue and a master’s from Indiana University.
Preston had a very different experience with retinitis pigmentosa. He didn’t discover his eye disease until he was 26. Up to that point, he had no idea he was losing his vision. Preston compensated without even knowing he was doing so. It wasn’t until he had an eye exam that he found out he had RP. Thinking back, the diagnosis answered a lot of questions. It explained why he saw “floaters” or black dots across his vision. His vision over the next 25 years did deteriorate and he now just has light perception and is able to see shadows.
Anthony Scott is the Communications Specialist for Bosma Enterprises, a company that provides employment training and placement and rehabilitation services for people who are blind or visually impaired.