Laser Eye Surgery

[droopy0021]

thremp,

I know he meant it isn't getting worse. In my pre-surgery visits, at no point did they ask about my prescription history.

They did a series of tests (typical vision test, also corneal thickness and eye density or something). I was told to stop using my hard contacts for 6-8 weeks (can't remember) and went 10-12 weeks wearing glasses.

Then my vision & eyes were tested day before the surgery for an updated reading. There are no claims made stating your vision may not get worse even after the surgery (in fact, the doctors office stated my vision could deteriorate over time. The surgery only corrects the vision as it is that day and makes no guarantee for the future. That is one of the risks of Lasik--not much long term data.

[TheEngineer]

I had LASIK five years ago. My vision has stayed 20/15 and totally stable (despite the abuse I've inflicted on them by being an engineer, practically full-time poker player, and poker rights agitator/whiner). I have no halos, and my night vision is excellent. No complaints whatsoever.

As for the surgeon, the most important criterion is number of surgeries performed. For this surgery, a LASIK mill with a surgeon with 10,000+ surgeries under his belt is better than an expert eye surgeon who spends most of his/her time on cataracts and glaucoma (I'm not saying to go or not to go to a "mill"....I'm saying look for experience.....2,000+ surgeries). The other important thing to verify is that these places turn down unsuitable candidates. You need sufficient corneal thickness, and you need pupils that don't expand beyond the scar tissue created by the flap creation (otherwise you'll see halos or worse at night).

As for cost, mine was $1000 total, which included one year of follow-up visits, but I didn't cost shop it. After all, they're my eyes. It just happened that the cheap place was the best place. In fact, my wife went there two years later, and I sure wasn't looking to save a buck there. Verifying the soundness of the decision, they gave her a very thorough checkup and told her she'd not be a good candidate.

So, I highly recommend it. No down sides for me at all.

[Thremp]

droopy,

Umm... AFAIK they should ask about your prescription before. IE If you are getting a stronger lenses each time, then LASIK probably isn't the thing to do right now.

Engineer,

Mind sharing where you got yours done?

[John Spartan]

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I'd disagree with this. PRK is much older technology (can you even find a doctor to do this?) which involves making tiny cuts in the eye, which as described to me could leave the eye weak. With Lasik the cornea is sliced and flipped over. The cornea then begins healing immediately after the surgery and if you have a decent corneal(sp?) thickness, should heal like new and you may even be able to have another procedure if need be.


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With all due respect I do not think you know what you are talking about. I had thin corneas so he did PRK but I would have preferred it anyway. plenty of docs still do PRK and it's tried and true. lasik only came along because of the shorter recovery time and other temporary benefits

like i said, prk took me from 20/350ish to 20/15. had it done two years ago.

[droopy0021]

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[ QUOTE ]


I'd disagree with this. PRK is much older technology (can you even find a doctor to do this?) which involves making tiny cuts in the eye, which as described to me could leave the eye weak. With Lasik the cornea is sliced and flipped over. The cornea then begins healing immediately after the surgery and if you have a decent corneal(sp?) thickness, should heal like new and you may even be able to have another procedure if need be.


[/ QUOTE ]

With all due respect I do not think you know what you are talking about. I had thin corneas so he did PRK but I would have preferred it anyway. plenty of docs still do PRK and it's tried and true. lasik only came along because of the shorter recovery time and other temporary benefits

like i said, prk took me from 20/350ish to 20/15. had it done two years ago.

[/ QUOTE ]

I can learn and did some research (internets is my friend):

Eye Vision correction comparison

I was mistaken in thinking PRK was similar to RK. PRK sounds like it is used often today (esp. for thin corneas like previous poster). Apparently it can limit dry eye effect of Lasik (an issue I have some, especially in winter or other low humidity places like Vegas).

Previous PRK patient has great vision after a couple years. I'm happy with mine after 3 years. I'm guessing the key is to make sure the doctor is experienced and can be trusted not to just grind you through at a discount rate.

PS I also used the term lasix earlier (instead of lasik). That's my latent reference to horses on lasix from back in my early horsetrack gambling days. I guess it was used to help them breathe or for blood flow.

Hard to take my word on eye surgery if I'm talking about a drug used on horses to lower blood pressure so they can run faster [img]/images/graemlins/smirk.gif[/img]

[TheEngineer]

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Mind sharing where you got yours done?

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It was a mid-size chain that has since been purchased by LasikVision, a much larger chain. I'm not familiar with LasikVision, though, as I've had no reason to go back since then.