Lasik - Laser Vision Surgery - Question?

Question

'm considering Lasik (laser vision correction) but have some misgivings. I'd love to hear from professionals who use the system and from people who have first-hand knowledge of how it works, side-effects, etc. Please let me know the pros and cons of this procedure, based on your personal experience.

Thank you!
Tia

(This is what I *meant* to ask, LOL!)

Thank you all for these helpful responses. Proof that there are helpful people with real answers out there. I cannot possibly choose a best among these answers, so I'll let the voters decide.

Answer 1

I had lasik about 5 years ago---I'm very pleased with the outcome. The only side effect I had (which went away about 6-7 months after the procedure) was seeing halos around lights at night--this is very common and in most cases does go away with time, however I've heard that for some people it never goes away. It wasn't anything dreadful and I could have lived with it if it did not go away.
Other than that I've been 15/20 ever since the procedure and would do it again in heartbeat!
My suggestion to you is do your research, and please do not go to any of those mall places that do it for like $100-$200.
Best of luck to you!

Answer 2

I work @ a LASIK center and I've also had it done.
Best thing to do is to set up a consultation at a few centers (to do some comparison shopping. This should be a 2 hour exam in which they take your corneal thickness measurements, refraction (check your prescription) and dilate your eyes to check the health. At the end of the exam, you should meet with the surgeon to discuss what you're a candidate for and to discuss any questions or concerns you may have. When choosing a surgeon, make sure he/she is experienced (years of experience in the field, number of procedures he/she has done, success rate etc). Don't go bargain shopping for the lowest cost! Make sure the center has leading edge technology. Do some research on the lasers/procedures the surgeon recommends for you.

Common side effects to laser vision correction surgery are over or under correction and night time side effects (halos and glaring). There is a laser that can reduce night time side effects (called Wavefront/Custom Cornea/Personal Lasik - all different names at different centers). It is rare that anyone goes blind from LASIK surgery (5 or 6 out of 27 million worldwide cases - those who went blind, it was only in one eye).

That should be somewhat helpful. If you have any other questions shoot me an email @ [e-mail]

Good luck!

Answer 3

Hi Tia,
I had Lasik done over a year ago. I have had a couple of side affects. There is some discomfort after the surgery and you have to put drops in your eyes afterwards for several days. When you go home they recommend that you take a nap to rest your eyes and take some pain medicine like Aleve, Advil, Tylenol, etc. After the surgery you will be able to see a clock on the wall perfect but there will be halos on everything that you see for a few weeks. When you have your consultation they give you a starter kit with the drops in it, sun glasses and a what to do and what not to do list. The surgery took a little over 2 hours after the consultation. One of the side affects is dry eye but usually goes away after a week or two. You should get a bottle of natural tears to get the moisture back in your eyes. I had my procedure done at Lasik Plus in Glen Allen, Virginia. The doctor there has done thousands of these procedures, is very experienced and well known. If you would like to talk to them here's the Lasik Plus Vision Center Information
10571 Telegraph Rd Ste 100
Glen Allen, VA 23059
[phone]

Answer 4

I have had lasik surgery, and it was the best money I have EVER spent. I started wearing bifocals when I was 4-years-old. I never knew what life was like being able to wake up and see. I was told by several doctors I couldn't get laser surgery, but finally it became advanced enough that I was eligible. The procedure was so easy -- I couldn't believe how simple and quick it was. I had to lay on a table. A pressure thing was placed on my eye, and all I could see was black. Sork of like if you push on your eye -- it didn't hurt. Then I was told to look at the little red dot of the laser. In less than 30 seconds the eye was done, and I could already see better than I ever had before. It was amazing. I totally support getting it done.

Answer 5

I don't have any first-hand experience, but I did consider Lasik for myself a few years ago and researched it then as much as I could. I'm sceptical about it: it burns away the surface of your corneas, and they will never be perfectly smooth again even if there is no serious scarring. Hence the glares at night, some loss of vision sharpness (you usually lose a line on the chart), etc. If you are very myopic like myself (more than -10), your corneas would also have to be thinned too much for comfort. Other complications, some painful, are rare but possible. The very low reported failure rate of the procedure is at least in part due to a lax definition of "success".

Answer 6

I had an advanced form of Lasik done which contours more to the individual eye (I forget what its called). I used TLC.

Anyway, went from being legally blind (I was +7.25) to 20/20 vision. No side effects, no problems.

Don't use discount eye surgery. I certainly wouldn't use a doctor that had glasses himself! WTF? And I took the post-op instructions very very seriously. None of this stuff like on tv where they take the bandages off and act normal 5 minutes after surgery. I didn't move for 24 hours and was super cautious my first week. You can't be too careful --- this is your EYES and its a change for life.

Answer 7

My husband and I both had lasik. I have nothing but good things to say about it, but my husband experienced a little irritation. But maybe that was because he never put his drops in.

Answer 8

Before you take this very serious step, ask yourself why so many laser vision correction surgeons still wear glasses. The technique has only been available for a few years, so there is no long term history of its effectiveness, or of adverse affects. Think about it carefully. You only have one pair of eyes...

Answer 9

prices vary as to the severity of eye problems, and some things that lasik can do cannot be done with a scalpel and vice versa.

Answer 10

i work for one of the top eye surgeons in the USA and from all his patients i have talked to they wonder why they didnt do it sooner. if you can have LASIK for your condition i would highly recommend it. it makes ur life so much easier, no glasses, no contacts. just make sure u go to a reputible surgeon