Shabir had lens exchange surgery in 2014, with Dimitri Kazakos, who is competing with colleague David Teenan for the highest number of damaged patients in litigation, though in Scotland it's an unchallenged win for Dr Teenan, OE’s UK Medical Director
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Shabir Ahmed, 61, from Watford, says he is another. For the former company director, who is now a full-time carer to his two severely disabled sons, aged 24 and 24,* who are both congenitally blind, says the result of his operation has been devastating. “I explained this to these guys right at the beginning: that I see for three people,” said Ahmed, who had Mplus X implants last February and March. “Sometimes at night I need to get up. I didn’t want to be looking for the glasses. Now even my glasses can’t help me. My vision now is so poor in darkness that I can barely see. And it is not just the effect on my vision but on me mentally and emotionally. In a way I feel enormously foolish.”
www.theguardian.com/society/2015/jan/03/...-but-all-blurred-now
*Misprint: Shabir’s sons were then aged 24 and 31.
Like most others pressured into buying lens exchange surgery (RLE) aka natural lens replacement (NLR), Shabir was told by greedy and unethical Optical Express employees (rewarded with bonuses and prizes for meeting sales targets) that he would never get cataracts if he had this surgery, but unfortunately they failed to highlight the very possible and frequent downsides to this unnecessary and risky surgery.
In January 2015, as a result of the aforementioned article in The Observer (hard copy) and The Guardian (online), BBC London News presenter Sonja Jessup interviewed Shabir, and his supportive MP Richard Harrington.
With filmed excerpts from Shabir’s exceptionally demanding daily life, scheduled for broadcast a few days later, the piece would have been dynamite publicity to highlight the scandal that is this industry: but given the right of reply, Optical Express reverted to their usual modus operandi when faced with honest public criticism - they called in lawyers!
The broadcast was postponed, and then shelved by the BBC, as it had lost its impetus on the back of the newspaper reports. (Note I say ’shelved’, which means it is sitting in the BBC archives!)
Unable to bear the discomfort and debilitating vision any longer, in 2016, Shabir underwent an explant of the left lens at Moorfields Eye Hospital (MEH), followed three months later by a vitrectomy…
After discussion with his NHS surgeon, not wanting to push his luck and risk another explant, considering the increased possibility of a retinal detachment, Shabir decided to live with the poor vision in his right eye.
Last Wednesday, following the BBC Radio 4 Inside Health broadcast, I accompanied Shabir to MEH for his third post op checkup since emergency surgery on xmas day - after he suffered a retinal detachment in his left eye on 24 December!
The MEH consultant clearly explained that the likelihood of retinal detachment is increased with any surgical procedure that interferes with the lens and the vitreous, and any interference with your retina and vitreous greatly increases the likelihood of cataracts, therefore people who suffer a retinal detachment after laser surgery are at greater risk of developing cataracts.
Shabir is currently in litigation, with Optical Express shockingly arguing last week that his claim is fabricated!
Pamela Erskine is another victim of this scandal relying on the NHS: the prognosis not good after FOUR operations to reattach her retina following RLE surgery, performed by David Teenan - and sold to her at at the age of 47! (And the RCO considered it appropriate to have Teenan on the RSSWG core panel to write the College’s Refractive Surgery Standards!)
Moorfields Eye Hospital, and many other NHS eye hospitals across the UK, provide incredibly costly care and treatment to a rapidly escalating number of people damaged by private refractive eye surgery providers.
And the government have no problem with this!
Shabir will be asking MEH for an approximation of the costs to the NHS for his many consultations and operations, and I will encourage Pamela to do likewise - and anyone else who’s been provided with NHS aftercare as a result of refractive surgery performed by private companies.
This should also be taken up by your MP - and I don't care how useless s/he might be, get it on record that you have asked them! Don't be put off with a letter, unless you’re housebound INSIST on a face to face meeting, they’re paid to serve you!
Important: before my next scheduled post (tomorrow), to be able to appreciate its content, if you haven’t yet done so please listen to the BBC Radio 4 Inside Health broadcast - link in post below.