As a result of long-term problems with her vision, Elaine
Van Balveren took early retirement.
“I’m a diabetic, and I worked at the hospital in the
business office. I had to retire because of disability due to my vision,” she
says.
Diabetic retinopathy is a leading source of blindness in
adults. If the disease proceeds unchecked, abnormal bleeding vessels and
resulting scar tissue can destroy the retina and the macula.
In Elaine’s case, the problem was growing severe. In 2000,
her ophthalmologist referred her to retina specialist Salomon Melgen, MD, of The
Melgen Retina Eye Center.
“I was going to another retinal specialist at the time,”
explains Elaine. “My regular eye doctor, Dr. Catherine Lowe, said to me,
Elaine, you need to change doctors. I’m
sending you to Dr. Melgen, because otherwise you’re going to lose your vision
.
“So I went to Dr. Melgen on her recommendation. And lo and
behold, I began seeing better thanks to the laser treatments Dr. Melgen was
doing at the time.”
Diabetic retinopathy & Macular degeneration
“Many people mistakenly believe that there is a cure for
diabetic retinopathy,” observes Dr. Melgen, “but there is no cure. Just as many
diabetic patients must administer insulin to themselves, so must they be
vigilant about taking care of their eyesight.”
Back in 2000, Dr. Melgen’s examination of Elaine also
revealed that diabetic retinopathy was not the only problem she was going to
need to address.
“I’d noticed that something was going on with my right
eye,” recalls Elaine, “although I could still see fine. When I went to Dr.
Melgen, he explained that I also had the beginnings of macular degeneration.”
In the presence of macular degeneration, the main leading
cause of blindness, some people will experience a gradual loss of their ability
to see objects clearly, especially noticing a dark or empty space that blocks
the center of the field of vision.
In Elaine’s case, Dr. Melgen’s aggressive treatment initially
involved the use of leading-edge laser therapy. In more recent years, treatment
has also included the use of intra-ocular injections, but back in the early
2000s, these drugs were not yet available for treating serious eye diseases.
When Dr. Melgen offered them to Elaine, they came just in
time to possibly save her from blindness in her right eye.
“In 2005, I went into the hospital with some mild chest
pains,” recalls Elaine. “You know, when you’re a diabetic, the longer you live,
the more it breaks you down. I was in my hospital bed reading when suddenly I
couldn’t read anymore. I went blind in that right eye.
“It was so
horrific to lose my vision in that eye,” she remembers, “and, of course, I
couldn’t drive anymore. But Dr. Melgen was very reassuring. He said,
Work with me, and I will make sure you get
your vision back, or at least improve it. It may not get back to one hundred
percent, but you will be able to see
.
“He gave me hope.”
Help for the legally blind
The main problem, says Dr. Melgen, is that there is no
objective measurement of visual acuity for patients who are termed legally
blind. When a patient can no longer identify the letters on an eye chart, few
specialists will treat them, and as a result these patients are all catalogued
the same, as being legally blind.
“The truth is that there are many different degrees of
legal blindness. In the chart, they all look the same, but we’re not treating
charts; we’re treating
patients,
” he
emphasizes.
By treating macular degeneration aggressively, Dr. Melgen
has found that, although a chart cannot measure their visual improvement,
patients themselves report that they are obtaining outstanding results.
Satisfied patients
“Outcome testing has to be a part of the practice,”
reflects Dr. Melgen, “and because these patients’ results will not show in a
standard eye chart, we decided to measure our levels of patient satisfaction by
way of an informal written survey.”
The results have been stunning.
“Since we began the patient satisfaction survey,
ninety-five to ninety-seven percent of our patients have reported extremely
positive outcomes,” says Dr. Melgen. “These patients all say that their vision
has improved, and they rate us as excellent.
“My first
responsibility is to my patients,” concludes Dr. Melgen. “To give them hope,
and to help them, is worth going the extra mile to do these treatments. They
are very happy, and I’m pleased to be able to help them.”
Saving sight
In the case of Elaine’s blind right eye, Dr. Melgen’s
aggressive treatment eventually began to yield results.
“First, Dr. Melgen performed surgery on that eye,” reminds
Elaine. “After the surgery, I could see a bit. I couldn’t see colors or faces,
but I could see shapes. Dr. Melgen told me,
Just
keep coming back to the office. Don’t miss any appointments.
That’s what I
did. I showed up at every appointment, and still do, because it’s very
important that you don’t miss an appointment.”
Over time, slowly but surely, the vision in Elaine’s right
eye began to improve.
“We began working really hard together,” she says. “The
injections improved my vision tremendously. And the day came when I could see the
doctor’s face. I said,
Wow, I can see
you, Dr. Melgen! This is a big improvement
.”
Ultimately, the vision in Elaine’s eye actually returned
to the point where she can once again drive during the daylight hours.
“You can’t
imagine what it is to gain your vision back after having lost it for a year and
a half,” continues Elaine. “Before, I could only watch television with my good
eye, the left eye, but now I can watch it with both eyes. And I can read again.
Imagine that!
“I have frequently referred other patients to him too,”
she confirms. “I have neighbors who went to him from another practice. They had
been told,
There’s nothing more we can do
for you
. I sent them to Dr. Melgen and they are very happy with their
results, too. It’s amazing what this doctor does.”
She adds that when she refers others to Dr. Melgen, she
reassures them that the injections she receives are not painful at all.
“Years ago, when Dr. Melgen first mentioned giving me injections
in my eye, I thought,
Oh my goodness
.
But really, it’s nothing. He numbs the eye so well, I don’t really feel it. I
know he’s doing something, but I don’t feel any pain.
Above all, Elaine says she appreciates Dr. Melgen and his
staff for their help over all these years.
“He has a wonderful staff,” she assures. “They’re all so
personable, and they give you undivided attention. They treat you with respect,
dignity, and caring.
“And Dr. Melgen is a top doctor in his field, but he’s much
more than just a doctor. He really cares about his patients. He’s very one-on-one
with you, and makes you feel special. You don’t always get that experience when
you go to a doctor.
“As long as he’s there for me, I’ll be going to his
office, because I need him. I would never stop seeing him. Throughout the day,
I think of him many times, and I pray,
Please
keep him here with us as long as You can, because I need him and so do many
other people
.” FHCN - Michael J. Sahno