Currently, there is no way to get a completely lost eye back. It is impossible to make such an artificial substitute that could restore lost vision. The only thing that can be done in this case is to restore the external signs of the missing eye with the help of a prosthesis. In appearance, it almost does not differ from a real organ.
Why do you need a prosthesis
Prostheses are placed in order to visually return the eye. They are mobile and identical to the second eye. There is also a medical side to the problem of the lack of ocular prosthetics. This, for example, is the deformation of the face in children without an eyeball. In this situation, the prosthesis is simply necessary, because the consequences can be very bad.
Types of eye prostheses
There are two main types of prosthetic eyes:
- Glass. Such prostheses are made of several types of glass. The basis is corneal, colored and scleral glass. This prosthesis comes outlight and well wetted with a tear. Of the minuses, the fragility of glass should be noted. Such a prosthesis requires a careful attitude, otherwise it may crack or break. Wearing such an eye substitute for a long time will not work, because its service life is only one year.
- Plastic. If you are not very careful, then plastic eye prostheses are more suitable for you. They are highly durable compared to glass. Their service life is also higher, it is two years. They are inferior to glass in their weight and smoothness. Plastic prostheses weigh an order of magnitude more, and their surface is not as smooth.
There is, in addition, a single-walled and double-walled eyeball prosthesis. The first is used when the eyeball is not completely removed, and the second - when the surgeon has completely removed it.
Operation
First, doctors remove the damaged eye. For this, the patient is given general anesthesia and the mucous membrane is separated from the eyeball. The nerves and muscles that hold the eye are cut, after which the eye no longer holds anything, and it is simply removed. The mucous membrane remains almost intact.
After the eye is removed, the empty area needs to be filled somehow. To do this, surgeons sew muscle tissue together and inject either the patient's own material or artificial material.
To start prosthetics, the wound must heal. To do this, you need to wait a couple of weeks. After that, a temporary plastic implant is inserted to keep the hole from getting smaller. The final prosthesis is inserted only after a few months. Sometimes multiple interventions are required to prepare the fundus.
Custom dentures
In order to make the eye as similar as possible, you will need individual prosthetic eyes. They will cost more, because they are made specifically for the characteristics of your eye cavity and the color of the pupil. These may be features such as the shape of the conjunctival cavity, color, size of the iris, sclera, location of the vascular pattern.
The production of an individual ocular prosthesis begins with the formation of a cast of the mucous membrane. After that, a suitable material for the patient is selected, and work begins on the design of the prosthesis.
Personal ocular prosthetic work is usually done on the first day of visiting the clinic.
How glass prostheses are made
Glass eye prostheses are made by smelting from a special material. To begin with, a tube of cryolite is taken, melted and only the necessary part is separated. The result is a shape with two rods on the sides. Inside all this there is emptiness, and the deformation of the form is carried out due to the fact that one of the tubes is blown. The master blows a ball out of this mold.
One of the rods is removed, and in its place they create the basis of the iris. This is done using a special colored glass. A piece of such glass is welded to the ball and inflated to 10-11 mm, after which a rounded shape is blown out of it. After that, using colorglasses are applied to the base of the iris, the cornea, and the pupil is made in the center. After that, scleral glass is applied, making a smooth transition between the cornea and the sclera.
When the pupil is ready, the ball is melted into an ellipsoid shape with blood vessels on it to make the eye even more realistic.
Making eye prostheses from glass takes a maximum of an hour. They can be done right at the same time you arrive at the clinic.
Plastic
Production from this material takes more time, and the process itself is very different. It all starts with the creation of a plaster mold, after which plastic is poured into it. Then all this is processed in a hydraulic press. Then it is fixed in the clasp, and the process of cooking the prosthesis begins.
The iris and pupil for the plastic prosthesis are drawn by artists using high quality oil paints. This is done by a specially trained artist.
The prosthesis undergoes a special treatment, during which blood vessels are drawn. When the job is done, the item is carefully polished to the highest possible smoothness for plastic.
Approximate production time for a plastic prosthesis is 2-4 days. This is much longer than glass. Because of this, the price of plastic is higher.
How much does an eye prosthesis cost
The average cost of an eye prosthesis in Russia is 6 thousandrubles. Prices, of course, vary depending on the material from which the product is made. To make an individual eye prosthesis will cost more, on average it is about 13 thousand rubles. If you have a disability, then in Russia you will be provided with it free of charge, at the expense of social insurance funds.
Where prosthetic eyeballs are made
This issue is de alt with by the factory of eye prostheses. Often such enterprises specialize in their own, certain material. In Russia, in many large cities, eye prostheses are made, in Moscow for example. To get an individual eye prosthesis, you need to go directly to the clinic itself, and you will be taken care of.
Problems when wearing
After the patient is fitted with a prosthesis, there is no pain, but some discomfort is felt in the first days. Over time, a person gets used to it, and the inconvenience no longer appears. It is best to wear dentures around the clock, because even a break for several hours can affect the size of the mucous membrane. But this point is better to discuss with your doctor.
An important problem is increased tear production and frequent contamination. From this follows the need to wash the prosthesis every day. This should be done under clean warm water, without using any cleaning products. You can hold the product in s alt water for a maximum of 10 minutes.
Resemblance to a real eye
Most people expect a prosthetic eye to be almost indistinguishable from a real eye in appearance. This is misleading becausewhich clients often get upset. You need to understand that no matter how skillful an eye prosthetic artist has, in any case, creating a completely identical eye is impossible. The eye tends to change color and pupil size under different lighting conditions, so it will almost always be slightly different from the prosthesis.
Also, the preparation of the eye cavity for the prosthesis plays an important role. The worse it is carried out, the less will be the resemblance to the original.
Reviews
People who wear prosthetic eyes speak positively about them. They say that at first the product causes discomfort, but after a couple of months they no longer distinguish it from a real eye. Clients claim that without a prosthesis, they were too often noticed, which interfered with normal life.
Summarize
The only way to return to normal life after the loss of the organ of vision is ocular prosthetics. Although it will not help you see, it will still externally return your lost eye. Without an eye prosthesis, complications can begin, and it will not look the best outwardly.
