Everett's Eye Injury

I cannot even begin to count the number of times we have been in the ER with our boys! Everett being the one who keeps us there the most! Between all the visits for his respiratory issues, sewing his tongue back on, gluing his eyebrow closed - I think this was one of the scarier visits because his vision was compromised. At Ricky's baseball game, Everett was playing with sidewalk chalk. He was crying because he got something in his eye. We assumed it was dirt or maybe even chalk. But we thought he would be fine. After the game, I took him to the Relay for Life. He cried the entire time. We ended up leaving. He fell asleep, so I was hoping he'd be fine. He ended up staying in our bed all night. Every time he woke up and tried to open his eyes he would scream. So I got up and took him to the ER. He would not open his eyes at all. They had to tie him up in a papoose and have two nurses hold him down. :0( The doctor put numbing drops in his eye, so he would be able to open it. Then the doctor put a dye in his eye to show if there were any scratches on his cornea. His entire cornea was opaque. Which meant that the entire cornea was damaged. They tested the other eye for comparison and in his good eye the cornea was clear. The doctor was very concerned about the damage and possible vision loss. He said it was most likely the chalk which is very abrasive. He gave us antibiotic eye drops to prevent infection. He found an opthalmologist who opened his clinic on Saturday just for Everett. Dr. DeJean at the Avery Clinic came up Saturday afternoon on his day off and opened the clinic up to see us. I was worried because Everett did not cooperate at all at the ER. But Dr. DeJean was amazing with him! I had to put the numbing drops in his eye so he could open it, but then the visit was a breeze! Dr. DeJean pretended he was Batman, and Everett pretended he was Iron Man! They made quite a pair! The doctor examined his eye and saw the same thing the ER doctor saw. But he was very positive in his prognosis. He put a salve in Everett's eye and bandaged it. It was not an easy weekend! Everett just wanted to lay down with blankets over his head! He wouldn't even open his good eye, he wouldn't eat, couldn't go to the bathroom by himself. It was rough! Monday afternoon we went back for our follow up with Dr. DeJean. He said where the cornea was rugged on Saturday, it was now like sandpaper. Though it doesn't sound like it this was an improvement. But it hadn't healed as fast as he thought. So rather than the drops, he gave us the salve to put in his eye. And it did the trick! By the next morning he had improved and was doing better and better! By our next follow up on Thursday it was healed! He did ok on the vision test. He couldn't see the last line, but this could be from the leftover salve blurring the eye. Now he is still a little sensitive to light, but it is healed and he is doing great! If you ever need an opthalomolgist Avery Eye Clinic is the way to go!