laser eye surgery?

[Wisnu]

I had RK 27 years ago in Indonesia (no Lasik at that time). My eyes were -6 cyl. 1 and -5 cyl. 2
I start diving since 6 years ago, no problem so far.

Indeed this surgery does not prevent normal eye aging. I need cheap reading glass to read small fonts articles - does not affect my diving.

 

[Crush]

It is nice to hear so many positive responses.

Any major negative responses in the last five years?

 

[Bubbletrubble]

I'll consider getting it done once my ophthalmologist friends start getting it done. Until then, I'll deal with the inconvenience of contacts. The risk of damaging my vision, albeit small, is not worth it for me.

 

[avlena]

to answer some of your less subjective questions...
-Yes, even if surgery goes perfectly, it only corrects existing eye conditions - it doesn't prevent normal eye aging, so you'll probably need glasses of some sort when you're older. So, is ~20 years of contact-free life worth it?


Are you talking about reading glasses? Do people use contacts to substitute for reading glasses when other than up close stuff like reading, they're eyes are fine? I honestly don't know. I guess what I'm saying is that if I walk around with my reading glasses on everything is blurred.

to be honest, since I'm not at that point, I'm not sure what kind of glasses are necessary when older. From what I learned from the myriad of docs I spoke to, Lasik changes the shape of the eye - it does not correct/impact the eye's ability to focus, which is what deteriorates when you get older (thus requiring reading glasses/bifocals/whatever).

 

[sunkmail]

I had mine done with PRK, in November 2010.

I am still on the long-term eye drops, but only for another month or so.

As of my 1 month check-up, I'm at perfect 20/20 in both eyes, and am expected (by the eye doctor to get slightly better!)

Mine cost $3600 for both eyes, total, including taxes - similar prescription and some astigmatism.

Some Places offer a low price, but then have add-ons. Watch out for this when looking around - I can't imagine anyone not wanting the things that improve your outcome chances, etc, so the price will probably end up being the same.

The new/current generation of Lasers virtually eliminate the Halo effect. Older lasers had a relativily small burning diameter. The halo is from when your pupil open wider than the corrected area (usually at night, of course) and you are partially seeing through the transition area, and un-corrected area. The new ones have a wider diameter.

What part of Western Canada are you in? I had mine down in Vancouver, sorta near VGH. They have free, no obligation consults. They will give you a bit of a sales pitch via video, then do actual testing of your eyes to confirm you're a candidate, and provide you with a quote for your needs.

Feel free to PM me if you want more info.

 

[boulderjohn]

I had my Lasik about 6 years ago. My vision is still 20/15 in both eyes. No halos. I do have to wear reading glasses, though.

Oh, and Rainer, both my former and present optometrists (first one retired) had Lasik before I did.

 

[gt68]

I had lasik done in 2001.The first couple of years after went well with 20/20 vision .Around 2005 the vision in my left eye started getting blurry.The eye doctor said it was ketraconus then changed that to ectacia.Now I cant even read the top letter on the eye chart.I have been through every test and even a clinical trial at emory university hospital to no avail.this condition cannot be remedied with glasses or contacts.I sure wish I could have my old glasses back.Right eye has held good though.Think it over good.

 

[fresh_fish]

You are getting a lot of positive responses. Here's my take on what may not have been considered. Yes, I did get it done about 3 years ago, and yes I'm very happy.

I forget what all the terms are now, so please bear with me. If you do it... make sure to get the one with the flap. The one where they just burn the surface, the protective coating takes a long time to grow back, has a higher chance of scarring, and will keep you out of the water for likely 6 months. It's essentially a giant scratch, ready for an infection to get in. As far as the flaps, make sure you go to a place where they cut the flap with a lazer. It heals much faster, and you get better results (typically less halos, etc) than with the blade.

You will begin life thinking it's horrible, dry eyes, itching, halos, night vision sucks, everything they say "might" happen. HOWEVER you will notice that as time passes, these things will go away. I had what I called good days and bad days for almost a year before I could say I had no side effects at all.

Oh, and make sure you go to a place where the follow up appts are included. You want to be absolutely sure the flap heals properly and everything is peachy as you go on with life. I think usually it's a 1 week, 6 month, and a 1 year visit.

 

[DevonDiver]

Moderator Note:

Thread moved to Medical Forum, relevant to subject matter.
​

 

[sunkmail]

You are getting a lot of positive responses. Here's my take on what may not have been considered. Yes, I did get it done about 3 years ago, and yes I'm very happy.

I forget what all the terms are now, so please bear with me. If you do it... make sure to get the one with the flap. The one where they just burn the surface, the protective coating takes a long time to grow back, has a higher chance of scarring, and will keep you out of the water for likely 6 months. It's essentially a giant scratch, ready for an infection to get in. As far as the flaps, make sure you go to a place where they cut the flap with a lazer. It heals much faster, and you get better results (typically less halos, etc) than with the blade.

You will begin life thinking it's horrible, dry eyes, itching, halos, night vision sucks, everything they say "might" happen. HOWEVER you will notice that as time passes, these things will go away. I had what I called good days and bad days for almost a year before I could say I had no side effects at all.

Oh, and make sure you go to a place where the follow up appts are included. You want to be absolutely sure the flap heals properly and everything is peachy as you go on with life. I think usually it's a 1 week, 6 month, and a 1 year visit.

I had PRK - That is the 'not the flap' method. I was out of the water for 4 weeks, but was allowed in after 2.

The place I went to didn't burn off the epithelium, they used a tool similar to a tiny soft spatula. (There is absolutely no pain - you can't even tell anything is touching your eye)

The lasiks (With the flap) does give you results faster, but takes MUCH longer to completely heal. For most people, the long term healing isn't an issue. If you're pretty active, and do anything where you may get bumped in the eye, it's possible -for several YEARS - for the flap to be dislodged, causing messed up vision. This can usually be fixed, from what I understand, if it's done fairly quickly. At that point, I think, they remove the flap, making it just like the PRK procedure.

The downside to PRK is that you are on eye drops for about 3 months, and the first 2 - 5 days after the procedure are fairly uncomfortable/painful. I couldn't drive for 2 weeks, and got eye strain easy, as it was still blurry for the first couple of weeks too. After the 3 months or so of drops is up, you are healed. No need to worry about a flap getting knocked around. Your eye is the same as if you didn't have the procedure, except that you no longer need glasses.

PRK does not have a higher chance of Halos, after the initial couple of weeks, where everything else is blurry. The actual lasering part is the same for both cases, and that is where the Halo would be introduced.

My follow up schedule was: next day, 1 week, 2 week, 1 month, 6 month, and 1 year - IIRC.

Disclaimer:
I'm not a doctor. I do not work for a laser eye place. I did a lot of research before getting mine done, and stuff like that sticks in my head pretty good. With that said, I could be off on some details, and, as with any medical procedure, results are not guarenteed.

Please excuse any spelling errors. It's been a long day and I'm heading to bed pretty quick - Too lazy to proof it properly right now....

I'm not a