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10-year-old relieved his eyes recover after optic inflammation
Saturday, November 07, 2009
By Wendy B. Lynn Staff Writer
Many people in the Clearfield area have heard about Caleb Strouse and how he suddenly went blind in September. Some people have heard the entire story, but many have heard only bits and pieces and have wondered what happened and what he's doing today. Caleb and his parents, Joe and Brenda Strouse, have wanted to make sure everyone knows Caleb is doing well, and they have a lot of people to thank. So many, in fact, that it's hard to remember everyone.
On Sept. 30, Brenda Strouse said Caleb woke up with severe eye pain, it hurt even to move his eyes. Since he also had a stuffy nose, his mom told him to take some Tylenol and go to school. She was thinking maybe it was just a sinus infection. While at school, sixth grade at Clearfield Area Middle School, Caleb got sick, so the school sent him home. He stayed at his great-grandmother's house and was still complaining of eye problems, so she suggested he go into the kitchen where she kept an Amsler Grid eye chart on her refrigerator. The Amsler Grid is used to check for blind spots.
"Grandma told me to check my eyes on the chart," Caleb said. The right eye was OK, but when he checked his left eye, he found a blind spot. The directions said to immediately call an eye doctor. Caleb called his mom.
The first eye doctor Brenda Strouse called suggested he be taken to the emergency room, but the family decided not to do that. On Thursday he went to school and his mom called Laurel Eye Clinic. They sent him to Dr. Rickard in Brookville on Friday. Dr. Rickard checked his vision with an eye chart. Again, the right eye was 20/20, but with the left eye, he couldn't see the chart, not even the big E. The doctor diagnosed him with bilateral optic neuritis, or inflammation of the optic nerve and said Caleb needed a "higher up" doctor as soon as possible, "or else I might become blind," said Caleb. "At that point I was flipping out."
The doctor told them to not let Caleb move all weekend until they were able to get him an appointment with a specialist. They were looking for a pediatric neuro-ophthalmologist and were hoping someone in Pittsburgh could take him, but no one had an opening. Then an associate professor at Case Western University Eye Institute in Cleveland, Dr. Bates, agreed to see Caleb on Monday. He wasn't even supposed to be at work on Monday, but when he heard about the situation, he immediately said to bring him in.
Joe Strouse added that Caleb's appointment was so last minute, his name was on a Post-it note at the receptionist's desk.
Caleb said at that point, when they arrived at the hospital in Ohio, he was almost blind. The right eye had begun to deteriorate during the weekend and by then all he could see was shadows.
Immediately Dr. Bates wanted to admit Caleb to Rainbow Babies and Children Hospital. Dr. Scher was the pediatrician assigned to him and Dr. Brown, another associate professor, was also assigned to Caleb.
The hospital took blood and began running a series of tests, including an MRI at midnight. "It was really loud and obnoxious," Caleb remarked about the MRI.
The hospital's motto is "No secrets, no surprises." As a result, Caleb's parents were told the results of every test, were allowed to sit with Caleb during the testing and knew as much as anyone else about what was going on. Brenda Strouse said they were very open and informative, "They were really nice there." Caleb was given a private room with room for a cot so his parents could stay with him.
Since the Case Western complex is a teaching hospital, the Strouses were asked if students could come visit Caleb. Whole classes would come to see him because his case was so unusual. Only about 500 cases of bilateral optic neuritis are seen in the United States each year.
"It was kind of cool," Joe Strouse said, "We were on the cutting edge."
Because they had to rule out the "big and bad stuff" first, Caleb underwent a lumbar puncture, or spinal tap. One of the many things they wanted to rule out was Multiple Sclerosis. "Let's just say the lumbar puncture wasn't very fun," Caleb said. In truth, it was painful and he had difficulty walking the next day. On a scale of 1-10, Caleb said the pain was a 10.
On Oct. 7, things started to turn around, beginning with a visit from his grandmother, sister Abby and brother Mason. Then, that afternoon, they found out that Caleb's right eye was beginning to improve. Each day, after school, his friends and family would send text messages, which Brenda Strouse would read and then send answers for him. Early in the afternoon on Oct. 7 the phone buzzed and Caleb picked it up, looked at it and said, "Who's Aunt Sandy?" Then, "Oh, my gosh! I can read my phone!"
Little by little the eye got better and when tests were done on Oct. 8, eyesight in the right eye was 20/25. However, things seemed to take a bit of a downturn for a while. The eye pressure in his left eye was elevated and he was sick, but slowly the swelling started going down.
The doctors decided to discharge him on Oct. 10. The steroids he was taking were doing their job.
After all the tests and all the waiting, the tests came back negative and the conclusion was that a virus had attacked his optical nerve, resulting in inflammation.
Also, as the last round of testing on Oct. 10, his vision was tested again and his left eye tested at 20/200, which meant he could see the big E on the eye chart. Since then, his vision has progressed steadily. He has to have vision tests every two weeks and on Wednesday his right eye registered at 20/20 while his left eye was at 20/30.
"Thank God for modern technology," Brenda Strouse said, saying it helped the family keep in touch with people back home. Fred Redden, the principal at the middle school, even managed to arrange a conference call between Caleb and his classmates during his stay at the hospital.
Caleb returned to school on Oct. 21 and turned 12 on Oct. 22. He said it was weird because everyone was so excited to see him and asked questions and gave him hugs. "The kids in the area, his friends, were and are just so supportive," Brenda Strouse said, adding that he received many cards and gifts from friends and family.
"He had a lot of prayers," she said, noting that friends and family had him on prayer lists all over the country, including Alaska.
The teachers told him they'd be able to get him a large print copy of the PSSA test, and one teacher has allowed him to download a book for class on his iPod since he is still having some trouble reading.
Brenda Strouse said it has been difficult and strange because Caleb is their athletic child, and he has been very limited in what he could do for a long time. However, he was able to play in a school basketball game and his parents say he did very well.
His dad emphasized that there is nothing wrong with Caleb's eyes, the damage was to the optic nerve, and glasses cannot fix that. The family doesn't know yet if the damage to his left eye is permanent, but they should know more at his next appointment on Nov. 19.
"The hindsight is, when you have eye pain, it's an emergency. Vision loss is very serious. We should have gone to Pittsburgh right away," Brenda said.
Tonight, Caleb's best friends will be having a surprise party for him at Trinity United Methodist Church in Clearfield to celebrate his return home and his birthday.
Caleb is just grateful to be home and able to see again. "I don't wish this on anyone, what happened to me."
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