A Durango boy born with a congenital cataract condition rendering him legally blind had slim chances of ever driving or playing sports. But at 11 years old, he’s a sharp shooter, whether it’s with a basketball or a rifle, and one of his favorite sports is lacrosse.
Preston Meyer, 11, will require eye treatment for the length of his life. But his eyesight is strong, accommodating athletics, skills with a video game joystick, qualifying him for a driver’s license when he’s older, and helping his prospects in the field of his dream job: mechanical engineering.
Besides lacrosse, he likes basketball, biking, skiing and baking, he said.
“Mostly desserts and … cakes and stuff,” he said.
He was born with about 20/200 vision, meaning he can see at only 20 feet away what someone with average vision can see at 200 feet away. Today, he has 20/40 vision.
Serra and Chris Meyer, Preston’s parents, said Denver-based nonprofit Children’s Hospital Colorado and Dr. Emily McCourt, pediatric ophthalmology surgeon with the hospital, are to thank for Preston’s progress.
Preston was diagnosed at 9 days old with persistent fetal vasculature, a condition that occurs when a vessel in a growing eye fails to fully recede.
The condition can cascade into various other problems. In Preston’s case, it led to a cataract in his right eye, caused that eye to be smaller than the other, and also caused eye misalignment and amblyopia, or “lazy eye,” McCourt said.
Preston had several surgeries early in his life. He had to wear a patch on his left eye routinely for the first nine years of his life. The procedure was to train his weaker right eye. While patching, he endured stares from others in public outings, scrutiny from classmates and even rude comments from adults.
“The trouble with amblyopia (is) that it requires intensive patch therapy in order to get the eye to work well,” McCourt said. “So he spent the first nine years of his life patching half of his hours to make sure that the eye would develop well, and it did.”
Serra said she is grateful for Children’s Hospital’s availability through what proved to be a challenging decade. The nonprofit “hand-held” the Meyers across every step.
Chris said they always feared the latest test would reveal some new problem with no easy solution. But that never happened.
The Meyers had to drive to Denver every several months for Preston’s treatments, and Serra said the Durango Derailers Patient Assistance Fund, founded in 2007, helped with their transportation expenses.
“It’s always good for local families to know that there are resources, even if you have to have a specialist that’s so far away,” Serra said. “They’re amazing at the (Children’s Hospital).”
McCourt said she once ran into the Meyers at Casa Bonita in Denver years ago. It’s a memory that sticks out to her. That, and giving Preston lollipops to make eye treatments easier.
“They’re doing stuff and making it part of their life journey, because it will always be a part of him,” she said. “He’ll need eye care for the rest of his life. He’s still at a low risk of having glaucoma or high-pressure problems and problems with his retina, but his risks are much lower now that he’s older.”
McCourt, who has known and treated Preston essentially his entire life, said her approach to child health is taking care of the whole patient, not just the patient’s condition.
“As you watch kids grow, and especially a kid like Preston, who’s resilient … it’s just a reminder that kids will grow up, that they’ll take that experience with them,” she said. “And so it’s really important to make that as much of a positive experience as you can make it.”
cburney@durangoherald.com
