A WOMAN from Hartlebury has been told she is "very lucky" to still have her eyesight after black dots in her vision turned out to be symptoms of a serious sight-threatening condition.

When Hannah Bailey started experiencing issues with her vision during lockdown, she thought it might be her new workstation set up to work from home.

The 43-year-old described seeing black dots in her vision, known as floaters, and a curtain-like shadow which started to appear over her left eye three days later.

Hannah organised a phone consultation her local opticians, Specsavers in Stourport, and was called in for a full eye examination with optometrist Vicki Fellows.

Kidderminster Shuttle: Hannah thought the issues with her vision were because of her new workstation set up at homeHannah thought the issues with her vision were because of her new workstation set up at home

Hannah said: "When Vicki looked at the back of my eye, she quickly realised that all wasn’t as it should be and suspected a retinal tear.

"It was all a bit of a shock, I had to call my husband to come and drive me to Kidderminster Hospital right away."

Following further tests, the diagnosis of a retinal tear was confirmed and Hannah was told her retina had started to detach.

She was told she needed urgent surgery, otherwise she risked losing her sight permanently.

Calls were made to Worcestershire Royal and Birmingham hospitals, but there were no available appointments, so Hannah had no option but to return home and attend Kidderminster Hospital again two days later, where she underwent surgery to repair the tear under local anaesthetic.

The operation involved a gas bubble being inserted into the eye.

"Although I could sense what was happening, there was no feeling or pain and it was over relatively quickly," said Hannah.

Kidderminster Shuttle: Hannah underwent an eye operation at Kidderminster HospitalHannah underwent an eye operation at Kidderminster Hospital

Hannah is now at home recovering and using eye drops every couple of hours. Her two-week post-op check-up appointment went well, and doctors were pleased with how the surgery went.

"I’m just so grateful to the team at Specsavers and the staff at the hospital for their wonderful care and attention," said Hannah. "The nurse at the hospital told me that I was very lucky that the tear had been picked up when it was as I could have easily lost the sight in that eye.

"I’m very short-sighted which can mean you’re at greater risk of retinal tears - something I’ve only found out since this all happened."

Specsavers optometrist Vicki added: "We are delighted to hear that the surgery went well, and that Hannah is on the mend.

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"Stories like this are usually quite rare, but we’ve seen a few cases of urgent eye cases here at Stourport and across our sister stores in Droitwich and Kidderminster during the lockdown period.

"Hopefully, now our stores are open, people will feel even more confident to come forward and book to see their optician if they are experiencing any issues or have noticed a change in their vision.

"We also want to encourage anyone who has missed their usual sight or hearing test during lockdown to book an appointment as soon as possible, so our team can return to providing the highest levels of care."