Matthew was doing quite a bit better yesterday. He was alert for long periods and relatively quiet. He was fighting the ventilator quite a bit, so they were giving him sedatives to keep him calm.
The eye doctor examined his eyes yesterday and determined that he needed to do a bit more laser treatment as well as possibly some cryotherapy (where they freeze a portion of his eye to stop the progress of blood vessels) on his left eye. Surgery is scheduled for sometime this morning.
The lens on his right eye has clouded up, so he'll have to take the lens out of his right eye soon. If the rest of his eye improves, he'll get a contact in that eye temporarily then receive a synthetic lens sometime later (when he's between 6 months old and 3-4 years old). It will be a fixed focal length lens which will give him clear vision from about 10 feet out to infinity, but he'll need reading glasses to read out of that eye. All this could be moot if he really has a hole in his retina. If that's the case, he'll likely only see patches of light and dark in that eye.
Jason and Jenn,
So many people keep asking us about Matthew and are still praying for him. Your continuing faith and endurance are an inspiration! Soon these difficult days will be a dim memory, as you experience the joy of watching Matthew grow and develop into the unique little human being he was designed to be. Can't wait to kiss those chubby little cheeks!
Love you all,
Mom & Curtis