Does anyone know of an ophthalmologist I can contact?

[Laura]

In my new book, my main characters loses vision in one eye due to a chemical spill. I've done some Internet research, but I would like some help with the details (treatment, what happens inside the eye to permanently damage it, pain factors, physical therapy - learning to see out of only one eye, etc.). My main character is a nine-year-old girl so that might play a factor as well. Thanks for any help you can provide!

[G.G.]

It's been a while but I used it quite a few times back in the days. Have you tried https://answers.yahoo.com/ (Yahoo answers).
If you place your question in the right folder and explain you are writing a book, you may get the attention of someone who is very familiar with the question. In your case, health/optical might be the folder to choose. Just look around and see.

For example, I once asked how would California deal with the evacuation of thousands of kids for a specific event. I won't go into details but anyway, I have received extremely helpful answers from firefighters, and rescuers who deal with things like that (or prepare for things like that).

It prevented me from making a huge mistake in my story. :P

Good luck.

[B.K.]

While ophthalmology is not my strongest suite, I do deal with a good number of eye injuries and if I don't know the answer then I have enough contacts that I could get the right answer.

Dr. Bryan Harrell

[Laura]

G.G. wrote: "It's been a while but I used it quite a few times back in the days. Have you tried https://answers.yahoo.com/ (Yahoo answers).
If you place your question in the right folder and explain you are wri..."

That's a good idea. Thanks a lot!

[Laura]

Bryan wrote: "While ophthalmology is not my strongest suite, I do deal with a good number of eye injuries and if I don't know the answer then I have enough contacts that I could get the right answer.

Dr. Bryan ..."

Thanks! Basically, she's playing hide-and-seek in her dad's lab in the basement of her house. She knocks over a bottle of cleaning solution that spills into her eye. Then, she slips on some of the solution while trying to get up. She hits her head hard enough that it knocks her unconscious. So, she doesn't get a chance to flush it with water right away. Her sister calls 9-1-1, and by the time she wakes up, it's too late. Bascially my questions are:

- How long would that solution have to be in her eye to cause permanent and total blindness?
- How long would it hurt?
- What tests would the doctors have to run in order to determine whether or not the loss of eyesight is permanent, or would they know right away?
-What would the eye look like after a chemical spill?
- I read that depth perception is a problem after losing an eye. How long does it take to get used to seeing out of one eye? What kind of therapy is needed to help a person adapt to this?

Any clarification or insight would be useful. Thanks again!

[B.K.]

Laura:

A few basic quick answers I will get back with the rest. The first thing is the cleaning solution acidic or basic. Acids work quicker than bases. If the substance is not immediately removed them damage to the eye can occur within minutes based in the solution. Typically the pain is resolved when the solution is removed or washed out. The eye will typically take on a burned reddened appearance with the conjunctiva taking the brunt of the damage. The biggest problem is when the solution burns through the cornea. This is often what damages the vision as the iris is affected and the rods and cones.
The easiest test for blindness is a simple penlight to determine if they have any light coming through the lens and iris. Consequently since you said she hit her head if the impact is to the occipital lobe the a MRI will look at that part of the brain that processes vision as well as the optic nerves.
As for therapy and depth perception I am not aware of any specific but I will reach out to my contacts and see if they have any. The brain is pretty quick to adapt to these circumstances and will usually correct quickly. My patients who get eye patches don't really report any depth perception problems with that treatment.

Dr. Bryan

[B.K.]

Also, the iris pupil will often be fixed as it cannot respond to changes in light levels.

Finally, don't really trust google answers for medical questions you get some quacks trying to sound important without any knowledge.

[G.G.]

Wow Dr. Bryan, that is a thorough answer. While I didn't need it, it's still awesome to see people like you taking the time to help like that.

On behalf of everyone here, thank you!