The scleral buckle make the eye myopic and why you see so close to your face. It should be possible to correct the myopia with glasses or contacts to move the focal point out.
Retina surgeons have expertise removing these. The question is whether it is safe to remove the buckle without inducing a retinal detachment. No ethical eye surgeon will remove a sighed eye for the list of complaints you present.
My strong suggestion would be to see 2 or 3 retina surgeons and discuss your complaints and how much it bothers you. It then becomes a case of risk vs. benefits. You might try Stanford and some of the U of Cal School of Medicine Dept of Ophthalmology.
I cannot tell you the costs since that will vary depending on where you live, your insurance, whether your surgeon participates in that plan and what is done.
Thank you for the answer Dr. Hagan.
Before I learned that a scleral buckle could be removed, I was seriously considering having the eye removed. That's how much it bothers me.
Could you please tell me what it generally costs (rough estimate) to have a scleral buckle removed?
Retina detachment surgery is very unique and defies generalizations. Same way with buckle removal. Generally buckles are left alone unless they are cutting into the eye (intrusion). Only a retina surgeon looking in your eye can appraise the risks which would include re-detachment of the retina
JCH MD