One Brick at a Time

So, what with one thing or another, the whole family has had some sort of minor illness over the last few weeks – we’ve all had colds and flu-type things, and my 2-yr old (Lana) had a mild case of chickenpox.

As Lana was coming to the end of her chickenpox, though, I noticed something odd with her right eye – it would occasionlly squint to the right while her left eye looked forward. My wife didn’t see it at first (it was intermittent) but after a few days she saw it, and then couldn’t stop noticing it. She also began to trip more than usual. 2-yr olds often stumble, but there was a definite increase in frequency. This I put down to her depth of vision being out due to the eye thingie.

I consulted with Doctor Goole and he told me that it is extremely common for a squint to develop in under-5s, and it is often brought on by a bout of chickenpox. The cure (to remedy any eyesight problems) is generally an eye-patch (arrr, Cap’n Lana!) but to remedy the aesthetic, an eye operation is usually needed, which kind of freaked us out. To get either (or both) of these we’d need a referral to an opthalmologist.

So, I booked Lana in to see the GP, who booked us in to the pediatric ward of the local hospital straight away. In fact, we drove straight there, expecing to see an iDoctor (not an Apple trademark, as far as I know).

Well, rather than see an opthalmologist, Lana saw a variety of doctors over the course of the next few hours, who then told us that we need to come back tomorrow (today) for another bunch of tests. She’ll see the eye guy today, but also a bunch of other specialists with impossible-to-spell titles, because one possible reason for the eye problems and stumbling is that there is a tumour pressing on her brain. The tests today should rule that out, and it’s probable that the issues are related to the muscles in her eye.

Funny how we’re now hoping she has to have an eye operation…