Question for those with bad eyesight!

[eep29]

This is a question for those with bad eyesight or know of people currently in vet school with bad eyesight... has it hindered you and if so, how?

Here's my status: with contacts I see 20/60 at best, and I have monocular vision (can only see out of one eye). Now, I can see fine close up. Just not distances.

I'm concerned at the thought of doing surgery but I hear that they have magnifying tools for use during surgery. And my thought process is that when I graduate, I could specialize in a non-surgical specialty.

Does anyone have experience dealing with this and overcoming obstacles w/ vision? I feel as though I should be realistic so I thought I'd ask for peoples insight. I don't want to count myself out, I just want to be cognizant of what to expect.

Thanks!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Bill59]

With surgery, it's near vision that's important and it sounds like that's not a problem for your. With monocular vision your depth perception is impaired a bit and although I don't know for sure, I bet it won't be that much of a problem.

The most important thing is to let your instructors know at the beginning so they can help if necessary. I know a student who is color blind and didn't want anyone to know. He had a lot of problems with histology until the instructor figured out what was going on. After that, with some simple accommodations the guy did fine.

 

[VelcroSky]

The most important thing is to let your instructors know at the beginning so they can help if necessary. I know a student who is color blind and didn't want anyone to know. He had a lot of problems with histology until the instructor figured out what was going on. After that, with some simple accommodations the guy did fine.

He's lucky the teacher gave a (proverbial) rat's ass enough to figure that out. Good teacher.

 

[kate_g]

With monocular vision your depth perception is impaired a bit and although I don't know for sure, I bet it won't be that much of a problem.

eep, I know someone who's stereoblind and is pretty terrible at microscopic procedures (surgery done while looking through a dissecting scope) but doesn't have much trouble with "macroscopic" surgery of the scale you'll need to do in vet school (anatomy dissections, spay/neuter, normal clinic stuff).

BTW you may not be allowed to wear contacts in anatomy lab because of the formaldehyde. If your vision is much worse with glasses you might want to consider that too.

 

[eep29]

eep, I know someone who's stereoblind and is pretty terrible at microscopic procedures (surgery done while looking through a dissecting scope) but doesn't have much trouble with "macroscopic" surgery of the scale you'll need to do in vet school (anatomy dissections, spay/neuter, normal clinic stuff).

So you don't have to do a lot of microscopic procedures then in vet school?

BTW you may not be allowed to wear contacts in anatomy lab because of the formaldehyde. If your vision is much worse with glasses you might want to consider that too.

What does formaldehyde do to contacts? Does it just dry your eyes out? Or do contact wearers have problems for a different reason?

 

[jfitzpatri8]

Formaldehyde fumes get in under the contact lens, and can lead to blindness (formate kills retinal cells).

That said, I had no trouble during anatomy with wearing my contacts.

There are many requirements to work on microscopes in vet school. Histology, General Pathology, Clinical Pathology.

Depth perception problems will make working around large animals a little more dangerous- sometimes you need to make the jump through the fence to escape that bull that is charging... and you don't want to bonk yourself on the head in the process.

There is a woman in my class who is deaf- other than not being able to diagnose less than a level 4 murmur, she seems to do fairly well.

Good luck!
Jenn

 

[Blue77]

Wow, it sounds like you practically described me! I also have low vision (born w/aniridia and glaucoma) and I have very little vision in my left eye from a calcium deposit that freakishly developed on my cornea when I was young.

I'm still only a pre-vet student, so I can't give any insight about vet school itself. However, I've had a conversation with my pre-vet advisor about this. She told me that as long as I show that I can visually see things with the proper accommodations, vet school and practicing is very feasible.

Just thought I'd throw this out there since it seems like we have similar circumstances.

 

[Bill59]

So you don't have to do a lot of microscopic procedures then in vet school?

You spend a lot of time looking through a microscope: histology, pathology, clin path. But you'll do little, if any actual microsurgery. The most common surgeries done through a scope are ophthalmologic surgeries; as a student you won't be doing these although you may assist.

 

[eep29]

Thanks for you responses everybody. I am not worried about the microscope. I've used those before - no problems there.

Assisting doesn't seem so bad. I think I could probably handle that ...

 

[kate_g]

You spend a lot of time looking through a microscope: histology, pathology, clin path. But you'll do little, if any actual microsurgery.

Yeah, sorry eep29, I didn't mean to suggest you wouldn't use a microscope. But my understanding is mostly you'll put the (flat) slide down and look at it. What I meant was you won't have to do much manipulation of stuff with tools while looking through a microscope - that takes a lot of time to get used to even for people with normal depth perception.

 

[kate_g]

Formaldehyde fumes get in under the contact lens, and can lead to blindness (formate kills retinal cells).

Of course without contacts, the fumes get onto the surface of your eye anyway - but with the contacts you have less efficient tear circulation so the formaldehyde doesn't wash away as quickly. I think part of the concern is also that the formaldehyde could actually get absorbed into the contact lens material, and then you'd have constant exposure which would be much more damaging. I don't know how possible/likely that is with modern contact lens material, but I also think that it's like the "no electronic devices" rule on airplanes - they can't possibly test every lens material for its reaction with formaldehyde, so they just ban all of them.

 

[amavtar]

This is a question for those with bad eyesight or know of people currently in vet school with bad eyesight... has it hindered you and if so, how?

Here's my status: with contacts I see 20/60 at best, and I have monocular vision (can only see out of one eye). Now, I can see fine close up. Just not distances.

I'm concerned at the thought of doing surgery but I hear that they have magnifying tools for use during surgery. And my thought process is that when I graduate, I could specialize in a non-surgical specialty.

Does anyone have experience dealing with this and overcoming obstacles w/ vision? I feel as though I should be realistic so I thought I'd ask for peoples insight. I don't want to count myself out, I just want to be cognizant of what to expect.

Thanks!

Hi
I have a question did you even apply for med school with moocular vision. do you know if it is difficult to get in med school with that situation.
Help

 

[Shepherd Lover]

Hi
I have a question did you even apply for med school with moocular vision. do you know if it is difficult to get in med school with that situation.
Help

This is a vet school topic, not med school...

 

[twelvetigers]

Hi
I have a question did you even apply for med school with moocular vision. do you know if it is difficult to get in med school with that situation.
Help

 

[jmo1012]

Hi
I have a question did you even apply for med school with moocular vision. do you know if it is difficult to get in med school with that situation.
Help

as long as you can reasonably perform all tasks that would be expected of a diagnostician, i dont see why they'd keep you out. people with other physical handicaps are able to work around their disabilities just fine in the medical fields

 

[LetItSnow]

I'm just gonna maybe cross the line ... but ... I'd consider whether your vision is stable. If it is, then ok, you'll find a way to make it work.

But if you're slowly progressive/degenerative ... I dunno. I hate to piddle on anyone's dream, but I'd think really hard before taking on the cost of vet school if I knew I were going to end up blind. Difficult field to practice in without at least <some> vision.

Anyway. I have very little depth perception because of very asymmetric vision. I wouldn't call myself 'monocular', but ... when I use a scope it's functionally monocular. When I do surgery I do things slightly different than most people so that I can grab suture with my drivers more easily. Etc. For that particular issue, don't sweat it, you may have to adapt, but you'll do it naturally.