Four of the 24 patients, who are living in the fear of impaired vision after they underwent cataract surgery at the State-run Minto Ophthalmic Hospital recently, will undergo a repeat procedure on Wednesday.
The surgery conducted last Tuesday has adversely affected the vision of these patients and even a week later many of them are unable to see. While doctors have discharged 11 of the 24 patients over the last four days, 13 are still under treatment. Of the 13, five patients have been affected badly and are not showing any signs of improvement.
While doctors have ruled out vision regain in a 58-year-old woman who has uncontrolled diabetes, they have planned to conduct a repeat procedure on the remaining four. Some of the discharged patients are now alleging that “they were sent home forcibly as the doctors wanted to hush up the matter”. “Although most of the patients are unable to see, the doctors have discharged them stating that there is improvement. Some have not even been given discharge summaries,” alleged Bhaskar K., whose wife Sujatha T.K. has undergone the surgery. She is one of the severely affected patients.
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Gangaraju, whose 60-year-old mother Hanumakka has undergone the surgery, said she (mother) was discharged on Saturday although she wanted to stay back for treatment. “They have not even given us the discharge summary. My mother had gone there to get her vision corrected. Now, she has lost whatever vision she had,” he said adding that some other patients had gone home without discharge summaries.
Hospital’s defence
Hospital director B.L. Sujatha Rathod said cataract surgery restores vision that has been diminished due to clouding of the eye’s crystalline lens, which is located directly behind the pupil. “If the patient has vitreous floaters, the increased clarity of his/her vision after cataract surgery may make the floaters even a bit more visible. Although there is improvement in some of the patients, they feel they are unable to see because of the debris,” she said.
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Attributing the problem to adverse reaction of a new batch of intraocular gel (Occugel 2%) used on the patients, Dr Rathod said the two cataract operation theatres in 123-year-old hospital have been sealed. “The presence of an organism “Pseudomonas” has been confirmed in the batch of Occugel 2% used on the patients, the doctor said.
“We have stopped conducting all routine cataract surgeries till the test report of the drug samples are out. Although there is no negligence on part of the doctors and all standard operating protocols have been followed, we will resume the elective surgeries only after the reports arrive,” she said.