On Earth Day 2021 is a day Bladen Melsa and his family will never forget. Bladen was helping clean up Crookston as part of an Earth Day project for school and stepped on a stick, lifting a second stick into and puncturing his left eye. The stick went through the cornea, through the lens, damaging the “colored portion of his eye,” the iris, past the vitreous, stopping just three millimeters from his retina.
His parents, Ryan and Ashley Melsa, both knew it was a serious situation when they heard the word “corneal rupture” and were told that Bladen might never see again out of that eye. They saw six ophthalmologists, with the sixth being Dr. Montazuma, who said that Bladen’s vision could be saved. After a long process of doctor visits and procedures, Bladen was given a “Star Lens” that has restored his vision in his left eye.
It’s been a toll the past few months on all three of them, and Bladen’s dad Ryan, wanted to make sure family members and the community know the support they’ve received from them is greatly appreciated. “We owe a huge debt of gratitude to the community and friends and family for sticking with us through this,” said Ryan. “Friends and family have been there the whole time and have been a rock through this whole process.”
Ryan also wanted to thank both his and Ashley’s jobs for allowing them to have flexible schedules through this challenging time. “We owe a great thanks to our jobs as well for how accommodating they’ve been with our schedules and being able to leave on moment’s notice to get to appointments,” said Ryan. “People in the community also reached out and gave us prayers and well wishes, and it was really humbling to know how many people truly cared about Bladen.”
Both also shared their huge thanks to all the staff and doctors of Crookston Eye Clinic for the emergent care, follow-up questions, planning, and post-accident eye checks.
For Bladen, it was a long and uncertain time without knowing if he would be able to see again. He talked about a few of the procedures the doctors performed, and his experience with the ultrasound performed on his eye. “You have to lay down so they can test your eyes,” said Bladen. “Then you close your eyes and move them in different directions while they have a gel on your eye.”
What allows Bladen to see once again is a Star Lens that doctors placed into his eye. The lens is specific to his eye, and bends light, and allows Bladen to process out of that eye once again. The star lens is like a soft contact that gets put in, in the morning. What Bladen sees out of his left eye isn’t “Black”; he describes it as “bright white light,” and his lens is tinted to help with the brightness as well as restoring his vision.
Bladen and his parents talked about the star lens he must wear now and some of the restrictions that come with it. “He can’t swim with it; he can’t go to the lake or shower with it,” said Ashley. “Basically, anything with water, the lens needs to be taken out,” said Bladen. “We just need to make sure it stays clean and that he has eye protection on it,” said Ryan.
Bladen will never be able to wear prescription glasses because the star lens also helps him process. Since the accident, Bladen’s eye is susceptible to light, and the star lens helps him process things with his vision.
The other reason Bladen can’t wear prescription glasses is that he needs a kind that is better suited for safety purposes. His risk for infection in his eye is higher than most because of the surgery, and because of that, Bladen needs to make sure he always keeps his left eye protected.
The star lens still doesn’t fit quite right, and it’s a trial-and-error process. Each lens takes two weeks to make, and they will continue to work with doctors until they get the perfect fit.
Bladen’s father, Ryan, commended how brave he was during the entire process. “I can’t say enough how brave and awesome he’s been through this whole process,” said Ryan. “Even when we were a wreck, he was the strong one letting us know everything was going to be okay.”
They will head down to the University of Minnesota and The Lions facility two times in September. They are excited to see his surgeon as she has had such a huge impact on their family and they are hopeful for the perfect fitting lens or alternative options if there are any.
Below are a few pictures of Bladen getting his eye looked at.
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