Anyone have retina detachment while on RCL cruise?

going back to the first post .....

 

when speaking of a cruise, most of us think of the Carib' ... and OP says this is the case

 

If so - then any medical evacuation from a ship at sea is gonna be the USCG 95% of the time (occasionally the USAF and USN helps out) {and even then ONLY if a resource is in range}

 

USCG medivacs from cruise ships are typically done to save a life .... and while this may sound harsh, a retina detachment is seldom fatal.

 

It (helo medivac) still might be done by CG but there is a factor that goes into the risk equation ....

Fatal, no, but you can very easily go blind if your detachment is not caught right away and treatment (surgery) is done. So it is very much an emergency and something that needs to be dealt with quickly. 95% of people who experience symptoms of RD (flashes, floaters, wavy lines, auras, etc) do not end up having a retinal detachment, however, if you do experience these symptoms most doctors will get you in ASAP to get you evaluated. I work for one and anyone calling to report these symptoms gets in right away. It's just not something you want to "wait out." Blindness is a real possibility if you actually have a detached retina.

Those symptoms can be an ocular migraine...I've had it a couple of times. You don't have a headache....but it's not always retinal detachment. The 1st time it happened, I rushed to the eye doctor....scared the hell out of me! The next time, I knew what it was.

Somehow I ended up on a different thread, but I want to let people here know that you can get your "good" eye lasered to help prevent a detachment in that eye - it reduces the chances of detachment by about 75%.

I had a detachment with minor symptoms; but my mom lost her vision to a delayed diagnosis and surgery, so I went to Duke right away - better safe than sorry. A few weeks after my retinal reattachment surgery (buckle and gas bubble), I had the other eye prophylactically lasered.

I would totally freak out if I got symptoms of a detachment on a ship. As others have said, it is a medical emergency.

Yikes, being nearsighted is being a factor sucks. I never knew this and I'm nearsighted.

I didn't had a detached retina on a ship, but I did when I was in high school. I played on the baseball team and was hit in the head with a ball. Long story. :')

Anyway when I went to the doctor they wouldn't even let me go home that day. I was admitted into the hospital. There wasn't an opening till about 5 days for surgery, but they said it was serious. If I was to trip or bump my head then it could have become completely detached. This was back in '79 and if I recall they said they wouldn't be able to fix it and I would have lost my eyesight. I'm sure the technology is so much better today. Luckily there was a cancellation and I had surgey 2 days later with a great outcome.

If you think this might happen I would be as careful as you can to not trip or bump your head. Best of luck to you.

Yikes, being nearsighted is being a factor sucks. I never knew this and I'm nearsighted.

I didn't had a detached retina on a ship, but I did when I was in high school. I played on the baseball team and was hit in the head with a ball. Long story. :')

Anyway when I went to the doctor they wouldn't even let me go home that day. I was admitted into the hospital. There wasn't an opening till about 5 days for surgery, but they said it was serious. If I was to trip or bump my head then it could have become completely detached. This was back in '79 and if I recall they said they wouldn't be able to fix it and I would have lost my eyesight. I'm sure the technology is so much better today. Luckily there was a cancellation and I had surgey 2 days later with a great outcome.

 

If you think this might happen I would be as careful as you can to not trip or bump your head. Best of luck to you.

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Those symptoms can be an ocular migraine...I've had it a couple of times. You don't have a headache....but it's not always retinal detachment. The 1st time it happened, I rushed to the eye doctor....scared the hell out of me! The next time, I knew what it was.

Yep or a less serious Post vitreous detachment. Post vitreous detachments increase your risk for retinal tears and detachments but are generally not as emergent and resolve themselves over several months, mostly on their own. But having these symptoms are scary and you never know what you may be dealing with, so getting checked out promptly is always the best bet.

Fatal, no, but you can very easily go blind if your detachment is not caught right away and treatment (surgery) is done. So it is very much an emergency and something that needs to be dealt with quickly. 95% of people who experience symptoms of RD (flashes, floaters, wavy lines, auras, etc) do not end up having a retinal detachment, however, if you do experience these symptoms most doctors will get you in ASAP to get you evaluated. I work for one and anyone calling to report these symptoms gets in right away. It's just not something you want to "wait out." Blindness is a real possibility if you actually have a detached retina.

And luckily, the federal government’s (USAF, USCG, USN etc) criteria for launching a MEDEVAC are to prevent loss of life, limb, or eyesight, and to prevent undue suffering. After coordinating these types of rescues for the last 4 years, I can confidently state that we would locate and launch an asset for this if no closer/faster medical care were available. However, it’s likely that the ship would reach a port with suitable medical care more rapidly than a MEDEVAC. :)

And luckily, the federal government’s (USAF, USCG, USN etc) criteria for launching a MEDEVAC are to prevent loss of life, limb, or eyesight, and to prevent undue suffering. After coordinating these types of rescues for the last 4 years, I can confidently state that we would locate and launch an asset for this if no closer/faster medical care were available. However, it’s likely that the ship would reach a port with suitable medical care more rapidly than a MEDEVAC. :)

Agree. Had more then 2 dozen on board Emergency's over the years, almost always they rushed ship to next port. Had 3 alone on one 11 nite sailing in 2016, 2 were Heart issues. Rarely seen Helicopter out to ship. Only couple times and they never used the Help Pad. Only lowered the basket by the pool, loaded the patient up and off it went. But even these times we went off course closer to an Island before they came out...

Two years ago I just got off a 7 day cruise, and a few days later had a severe detached retina in one eye. Had to go through multiple laser surgeries.. plus had the other eye lasered for prevention. I was so thankful it didn't happen on the cruise.. But I now know what to expect if it happens again, and a little relieved that there are ports with Doctors that can handle this. This may have been a weird question OP had, but for those of us who are at risk it is good to know other experiences and thoughts on the subject.

No, but I broke my foot on board Brilliance last year (unfortunately very first night :eek:). Spent the rest of the cruise in a cast with crutches and a wheel chair. :(

OP...hope you can better soon. My sister and my Dad both had the retina detachment recently. I feel for you.

No, but I broke my foot on board Brilliance last year (unfortunately very first night :eek:). Spent the rest of the cruise in a cast with crutches and a wheel chair. :(

 

OP...hope you can better soon. My sister and my Dad both had the retina detachment recently. I feel for you.

Just for info the OP posted almost a year ago!

Just for info the OP posted almost a year ago!

Oh great...another thread dredged up from obscurity. Got caught on that one. :o

Plus I am not really sure why the OP posted that question at all...anyway. :confused:

I can only make it so obvious.