For BRENT CHAPMAN, 15, a Stevens
Johnson syndrome sufferer faced with the
possibility of going totally blind, help came
just in the nick of time.
He had already lost sight in his left eye after
an infection earlier last year, which had
caused his cornea to disintegrate, despite
the fact that he had had four operations.
Then, a scratch on the surface of his right
eye refused to heal, developing into an
infection that would later persist to create
a 4mm hole in his right cornea.
Nothing helped – eye specialists in
Vancouver were stumped, and even an
American specialist who tried a radical
treatment method on Brent using placenta,
blood serum therapy and an experimental
epithelial growth factor, failed to make light
of the situation.
Faced with the grim possibility of becoming
sightless, Brent’s only option now was a
corneal transplant, which carried a 90% risk
of rejection.
In November 2006, Brent’s family met with
Professor Donald Tan, deputy director of
SNEC, as well as several other eye
specialists, in a last-ditch attempt to save
Brent’s eyesight. They decided that the best
chance for him would be to come to
Singapore to seek treatment.
Prof Tan operated on Brent, replacing the
front part of Brent’s cornea and leaving the
endothelial layer – the layer with the hole – intact. The operation was a success, and
Brent is now able to see again.
Mr KITTI ANANSONGVIT, 47, acquired a
mysterious infection of the left eye while
out golfing one day.
The businessman consulted several
ophthalmologists in Bangkok, but they
could not identify the problem. Eventually,
he flew to the US, where he spent six weeks
receiving treatment for his condition.
Though doctors there were able to help
him, he still ended up losing most of the
sight in his left eye. The infection also flared
up again two months after he returned to
Thailand.
On recommendation by his US doctor,
Professor Kenneth Goin from the University
of Iowa Hospitals, Mr Kitti decided to seek
help from Prof Tan.
In December 2006, Prof Tan made a groundbreaking
decision to go ahead with a
corneal transplant despite the extent of Mr
Kitti’s infection – by now it had spread to
almost the entire cornea.
Removing the entire upper part of the
cornea and leaving only the thin endothelial
layer which was still infection-free to
prevent rejection, Prof Tan successfully
restored Mr Kitti’s eyesight.
“With an active infection, no doctor in the
US or England would do a transplant,” Mr
Kitti says, which is why he is extremely
grateful to Prof Tan for operating on him.
Source: The Straits Times, 2 January 2007 |
