Savannah Guthrie Shares Good News About Her Eye Injury — And When She'll Be Back

Guthrie said she cannot see out of her right eye yet following surgery last week, but is progressing and expects to be back on TODAY after the holidays

File photo of Savannah Guthrie on Tuesday Jan. 9, 2018.
NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty

Savannah Guthrie is progressing in the right direction after undergoing retinal detachment surgery a week ago, but don't expect to see her back on TODAY until after the holidays.

The TODAY anchor called in to the show Wednesday with another update following an accident involving her 3-year-old son late last month. The injury ultimately required surgery on Dec. 11 to repair a torn retina in her right eye.

"I don't have my vision back yet, but I'm going to get it back, everything's on track,'' Guthrie said.

Last week, Guthrie shared a picture of herself and her son, Charley, following the procedure, which required her to sit with her face down.

She said on Wednesday that she only has about "a day or two more" of having to remain in that position for long stretches.

"The hardest thing about it is sitting still, having your head down, and you kind of get a back and a neck ache,'' she said. "I can't say it was easy, I don't want to undersell it, but it's manageable and I'm so grateful because it's all gonna turn out OK."

She estimated she will not be back on TODAY until next year.

"I was kind of wishing I could come in at the end of this week, but the truth is I still can't see out of that right eye and also it looks a little weird,'' she said. "When the surgery was first done I looked like I got punched in the face ... it was very swollen.

"Now it looks pretty normal, but I can't see. The short answer is I think I'm gonna come (back) after the holidays."

Dr. Donald D'Amico of Weill Cornell Medicine in New York City, Guthrie's surgeon, described the procedure on TODAY Wednesday.

"You think of how you would put a poster on the wall,'' D'Amico said. "We've all put a poster on the wall with glue. You have to hold it for a few minutes or seconds in order to get it to stick. The bubble (from the procedure) holds the retina reattached in the eye, and as the bubble goes away by the body absorbing it, the laser treatment and the freezing treatment provide the permanent scar that keeps it stable."

D'Amico also said Guthrie got lucky with the location of the tear.

"Fortunately for Savannah, the tear was at the side of her retina and not the very center, so the prospect for her central vision to return is very good," D'Amico said.

Guthrie's injury occurred on Nov. 21 when Charley accidentally hit her in the eye with a toy train while he was sitting in her lap. She initially missed two days on TODAY and underwent multiple laser treatments, but ultimately had to have the surgery.

This article first appeared on TODAY.com. More from TODAY:

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