Your surgeon will put a conformer shell in your eye socket during surgery. These days it is often a fully painted up temporary eye.
If you don’t put a hole or holes all the way through these conformers, a vaccuum can develop at the back of the shell.
A vaccuum is undesirable because it puts pressure on the suture line and makes the conformer difficult to remove.
The holes in the conformer or temporary eye are also useful as eye drops work their way easily through the holes.
Some patients report that these conformers make a tiny click when they blink.
Kids call them “talkie eyes”. Family members might even be able to hear the click.
After six weeks a complete new eye can be made and the “talkie eye” can become just a talking point.
One Response
Great site. I am a CTVI, and have a child with microphthalmia on my caseload. Major social issues. I don’t think any one has ever talked with his mom about enucleation and a prosthetic. Is a surgery like this considered solely cosmetic? Do you know if any state-aided insurances will cover any part of it, particularly if the child is having behavior issues? Most of the other sites I found have old info on them