driving license....

[the_anticarb]

I'm really fretting that I will lose my driving license as I have had so much laser, particularly on my left eye. Has anyone on here had a lot of laser and kept it?
I have had four heavy sessions of normal laser and one of endo laser on the left eye - the surgeon said for the endo laser he would need to go nearer the centre but would try to space the burns out.
The right eye has not been half as bad, only three small sessions.
Does anyone know if you are bad in one eye but ok in the other do you still get to keep your license?
The doc said not to tell the dvla for a few months as my eye needs time to settle after the op, but it is up for renewal shortly after that anyhow.
I'm thinking of going having a field test done at the opticians once my eye has settled so I can at least get some idea of whether I'd lose my license. If I get a field test done privately, and pass it, would I be able to use that in an appeal if the DVLA test was a fail?
I know that compared to losing my sight, losing my driving license would be small potatoes, and that the most important thing is that I can still see, but it would massively impact my life as i'd lose my job and then be restricted on where I could take a new job etc.
Why does this **** eye disease continue to threaten everything I hold dear? First a second pregnancy, now my career -it's the illness that keeps on taking!
Anyway if there are any retinopathy driving license success stories, plesase post (and say how much laser you had) as I need to hear some good news!

 

[noblehead]

The DVLA will insist that you have a Field Vision Test before they issue you with a new licence. It works like this, they use your postcode to decide which Opticians is closest to you and then write to you and say that you should book a test at your convenience, unfortunately you cannot decide which Opticians you'd like to use as I use Specsavers who are only half a mile further down the road but had to use the one the DVLA stipulated.

The Field Vision Test is fine and doesn't take too long, unfortunately the Optician is not allowed to disclose the results and they have to send this off to the DVLA for them to decide if you are fit to drive, I'm sure the DVLA also write also to your Opthamologist and Diabetes Consultant too but can't be sure that they do this every-time, depending on the outcome they'll decide if you should be issued with a 1, 2 or 3 year driving licence.

So far I've been issued with a 3 year licence each time.

 

[the_anticarb]

How much laser did you have to each eye Noblehead?

I've heard these tests can take some getting used to so I may just get one done for my own purposes once I've healed from the op. That way if I know I am likely to fail I can plan stuff like getting a new job, and it won't be so much of a shock. Beginning to think that a car based job may not be ideal long term even if I do pass the field test, as there may be problems with night driving /glare, not to mention hypos etc, but if I am going to have to change jobs I'd rather be in control of it than the dvla.

I know my left eye has taken a battering but my right eye hasn't been nearly so bad.
Do you know if the good eye can compensate for the bad eye on the test ,ie if your field is ok one side but not the other you'd still pass. Or do you need a certain amount of field in both eyes? (in which case, how come people can drive with one eye, but then the DVLA isn't always logical is it)

Also do you know how long you need to be stable for before they issue the longer licenses, or does it just depend on what your consultant says?

I'm really hoping i have not lost too much peripheral vision, but I think the four sessions they did before the vitrectomy they pretty much did all the laser they could around the edge, so this latest lot of endo laser may have affected it more in the part that actaully affects vision, just hoping my surgeon took the field test into account when he was zapping away!

 

[BioHaZarD]

I have a friend who is completely blind in 1 eye, he has a full driving license with no limits (he's not diabetic) so why is this different if the other eye is fine? I get that the eye may get worse in a diabetic due to the diabetes, but still if it's 1 eye then surely there's no difference if the other eye is ok for time being?

 

[the_anticarb]

The other eye is not completely ok biohazard, it has had three shorter lots of laser, but the doctor said he thought it was not too bad in that eye.
If it hadn't had any laser at all, then I wouldn't need to do a field test as it's only if it's in both eyes, but sadly both eyes have now been zapped.
And I'm not competely out of the woods yet as the right eye might start up again between now and the test although I'm praying not.

 

[SouthernGeneral6512]

One of my mates once had a crash near Dumfies with a guy who had only one eye and he was legal to drive.

Hope it all goes well for you :clap:

 

[SouthernGeneral6512]

The DVLA will insist that you have a Field Vision Test before they issue you with a new licence. It works like this, they use your postcode to decide which Opticians is closest to you and then write to you and say that you should book a test at your convenience, unfortunately you cannot decide which Opticians you'd like to use as I use Specsavers who are only half a mile further down the road but had to use the one the DVLA stipulated.

The Field Vision Test is fine and doesn't take too long, unfortunately the Optician is not allowed to disclose the results and they have to send this off to the DVLA for them to decide if you are fit to drive, I'm sure the DVLA also write also to your Opthamologist and Diabetes Consultant too but can't be sure that they do this every-time, depending on the outcome they'll decide if you should be issued with a 1, 2 or 3 year driving licence.

So far I've been issued with a 3 year licence each time.

Hope you don't mind me asking but have you had the laser where it's lots of little spots on the retinas?

 

[the_anticarb]

The panretinal laser, to destroy areas of the peripheral retina so that the eye's demand for oxygen is reduced, yes.
I'm beginning to wish I'd never taken this job that I'm yet to start. I may be on the look out for a more local job in the near future.Bad enough worrying about losing your license without worrying about losing your job as well.

Sorry just realised you may have meant that question for noblehead not me!

 

[SouthernGeneral6512]

No it's ok

Sometimes whne you read about it it says the little holes are to improve the oxygen suppy ... there seems to be a lot of disinformation about :sick:.

You have a very positive attitude anticarb I'm sure you will be fine :clap:

 

[the_anticarb]

The little holes are where they burn away healthy retinal cells as less retinal cells = less need for oxygen = switches off the stimulus to grow the new blood vessels which are abnormal.

That is how laser works - by destroying a large part of your retina which is on the periphery. The worse the retinopathy, the more retina they need to destroy so whilst they aim to only destroy the retina that is far away from central vision and not really used, they may have to go more in to the centre, this is when it can affect peripheral vision.

I'm still not clear if I will get away with it if one eye has not been lasered too much, can anyone who's had this test tell me - do you need to pass on both eyes or just one? I know one eyed people can drive, but I would not trust the DVLA to extend this logic to people with retinopathy so want to be sure.

 

[SouthernGeneral6512]

When you see how brutal laser is I'm always surprised before this bleed you said that you had noticed no change in peripheral or night vision

 

[the_anticarb]

I think that's because they did it quite far from the middle bit at first. If you think about it, your retina goes all the way around your eye right to the front, a lot of it will be superfluous so you won't notice it being killed. I did notice some of the burn marks after the sessions in the corner of my eyes, but this is usual after the surgery. I haven't noticed it affecting my peripheral vision, such as not seeing things on my side, but then you don't know what you don't know. But the surgeon said he'd need to go closer to the centre this most recent time, where it is more noticeable, so I must have used up the edges by now. As for night vision, it's hard to tell. I've never been one that loves it being dim anyway, and as it's now the middle of summer (although an english one) it's hard to tell. I go to bed well early these days anyway as my toddler wakes up at 6!

 

[SouthernGeneral6512]

Your toddler must lighten the gloom :clap: