Anyone get the laser eye correction surgery? I wear contacts but without them I can barely see like 5 feet in front of me. If anyone on this board did get it done how was it? Did it take long? How expensive is it and were there any side effects?

I had Lasik performed in Nov. 2000. It was quick, painless and got the job done. My brother and a friend of mine have also had it done. My friend had a drop of water get under the flap which took a few months to reabsorb, but other than that no problems.

My prescription was pretty weak before the procedure, so I don't know how it scales up for really bad eyesight.

The procedure itself takes about 10 minutes max. It feels a bit weird but not painful or too uncomfortable. Afterwards you just go home, avoid lights, and sleep. I drove myself to the follow-up appointment the next morning. You also use a lot of sterile eye drop for the next few months.

I've been very happy with it. The technology keeps getting better and price keeps dropping.

SGC

Anyone get the laser eye correction surgery? I wear contacts but without them I can barely see like 5 feet in front of me. If anyone on this board did get it done how was it? Did it take long? How expensive is it and were there any side effects?
I'm trying right now to get the Army to hook me up with the same surgery, the best thing about it is I won't have to pay a dime. I know a couple of people who have had it and they all swear it was the best decision. I, like you, have pretty bad vision, but I've been told I am an excellent candidate for the surgery.

Even though you mocked my beloved IS300 in another thread I will help you ;).

I had Lasik done about 4-5 years ago (back when it was new and cost $2500 per eye instead of $500). My left eye was -650 (could not read the big E at the top of the chart) and the right about -150, so pretty weak and unbalanced (spectacles would tilt on my face like a % sign when I was a kid and couldn't afford special lenses). Also I had astigmatism in both. I did plenty of research on Lasik and other options beforehand as I didn't have any backup eyes, and I went to the best surgeon in NJ.

At that time Lasik had a 98%+ success rate (i.e. didn't make vision worse for the person) - it should be better now. If you attend a free examination for potential Lasik they will probably show a video and explain everything that happens - the only bit done by the surgeon is to cut a flap off the surface of the eyeball and flip it back so the computerized laser can do its job by burning off bits to reshape it (about 15 secs, no pain). Then the flap is flipped down again and you wait a few days for it to heal (keep it covered with safety goggles, don't rub it etc). Find a surgeon who has done at least 2000 operations as some can cut the flap off altogether and other times infection can set in - both very bad. Note the initial examination (where they program the computer to create the right shape eyeball) occurs about a week before the operation and both visits take about 20mins each at the surgery (plus waiting time)- you will need someone to drive you home after the operation of course.

After 2-4 weeks my vision went to 20/20 in the left eye and 20/25 in the right and have been stable since. I saw halos around lightbulbs at night and night vision was not great. The halos went away, but the night vision, although improved, is still not as good as the day vision. BTW to drive legally you need 20/40 vision which is apalling.

I would definitely recommend looking into Lasik. But note that if your eyes are really bad (-800 or worse) then Lasik may not cure vision completely, you may still need (less powerful) spectacles. Also as you get older (early or mid-40s) you eye shape changes (due to eye muscles weakening - Lasik cannot help) and you will need glasses again. So if you are 40 already don't bother - I expect to have about 10 years of good vision (I am in my late-30's now) before needing specs again and that was worth $5k to me. My wife had the same Lasik operation a few months later and she is also happy. Find a good experienced surgeon (even if he costs a little more), make sure some trainee will not be working on you instead, and learn all you can before you go ahead with it.

Finally it seems that surgically implanted permanent contact lenses are only a few years away. Check into that avenue too.

Pelucidor, My brother's story sounds almost identical to your's except the outcome. He had Lasik performed by supposedly the best Dr. in NJ as well. He is actually the president or something of the Lasik blah blah blah. In short after 3 surgeries and weeks of severe pain he now has worse vision and has to wear a pair of $800 special order contacts. His one eye is so messed up that glasses won't help he actually has to have a contact that reshapes his cornea.

The problem was that his eyes got infected and the subsequent care afterwards was subpar. I won't go into details because he is still fighting the Dr. in court after almost 2 years. I will say to do a lot of research into the possible complications. That way you will be prepared if need be, he wasn't. Don't just research how many times the Dr. has done it or his success rate. If you aren't one of his successes you want to make sure you get proper care. You only have one set of eyes. He regrets his decision (as you can imagine) and it has really messed with his head.

Pelucidor, Out of curiosity who was your Dr.?

Pellucid:
1. "clear in meaning: easy to understand or clear in meaning (formal)"
2. "transparent: allowing all or most light to pass through (literary)"

;) :cool:

Thanks for the info guys! I'll look into it some more and hopefully if the price is right I'll go and get it done.

so how much does it cost nowadays? last time i checked the procedure went for bout 2k.

My surgeon in NJ was Dr Silverman in Parsippany (north Jersey) - a private practice. I believe he had the only privately owned Excimar (sp?) Laser (latest machine) in the USA which cost about $2M and are probably antiques by now. At the time of my operation (very early days for Lasik) he had about the highest number of opertions in northern NJ outside of doctors that were involved in the medical testing for FDA approval. I was recommended to him by several people and thought he was great - spent lots of time with me (I ask a lot of questions) and explained what could happen if things went wrong in detail. I assumed a risk of <1% for major problems and went for it and was lucky. Sorry about your brother .

Originally posted by zoom44
Pellucid:
1. "clear in meaning: easy to understand or clear in meaning (formal)"
2. "transparent: allowing all or most light to pass through (literary)"

;) :cool: Haha! Never thought of that. It's a made up name for my wizard when I used to play Dungeons & Dragons about 20 years ago - I just thought it sounded good. Yes I really am that sad...

Ha... and here I am the Edgar Rice Burroughs geek who thought you meant "Pellucidar".



Anyway, I did the eye surgery thing last December... right eye was not too bad, left eye was just really really bad. I don't remember the exact numbers anymore.

I had worn glasses or contact lenses since I was at least 8.

My procedure was $3600, done by a doctor in the Washington DC area. I've now got better than 20/20 in my right eye, and maybe 20/25 or so in my left, after almost 6 months.

Apparently, if my left eye continues to get worse, I may be eligible for another surgery.

I didn't have any problems with the surgery, no infections, nada. I do get haloing sometimes, and night driving is harder than it used to be, especially if I'm tired.... but it's tolerable.

I had RK done about 24 years ago and couldn't be happier. My wife had Lasik about 3 years ago and couldn't be happier.
Two things are very important:
First get a good surgeon (do your homework and ask the Doctor hard direct questions like how many bad incidents they have had).
Second, the younger you are when you have it done the better the results.

Vince

I am seriously considering getting this done as well. My vision is really poor. I can manage walking around my house, but for anything like driving there is no chance. I do have to wait until I am 21 though. At least that is what I have heard because if you get it done before then your eyes may change shape again.

One issue that's extremely minor unless it applies to you is that you are ineligible to be an Astronaut if you have had any laser eye surgery. Even doctors who are extremely good about giving patients information about the risks involved don't know this tidbit.

Just a couple more tidbits.....

1. Lasik uses what's called an excavating laser. Meaning, the pulse time is so short that the molecules dissapate without radiating heat.....meaning no burning.

2. The computer technology that controls the pulse distribution now allows it to be used for near sightedness and stigmatism.

3. The way it works is that it reforms your cornea similar to griding a lens, thus changing the focus of the light to match your misshapen eye.

4. Most people do very well with the surgery.

5. POSSIBLE side effects: improper correction, abnormal healing, night vision problems

6. Cost has significantly decreased. You can find it for $1-2k for both eyes and that includes free corrections.

7. Lasik is also known as the flap and zap procedure! :D

I had heard that there was a new or upcoming procedure that wouldn't require cutting the flap. Does anyone know about it?

I am 28 and I would like to put off lasik for as long as practical as procedures improve and prices are reduced.

I am concerned about the night vision issue. I am L-cone deficient meaning I don't see red very well (i.e. partially color blind). As a consequence, I don't see all that well at night to begin with due to sodium street lights and halogen headlights being yellowish and not pure white.

Is it wise to only get one eye done in my situation? My left eye is 20/50 and my right eye is 20/40 and I really don't like glasses or contacts.

Anyway, some general advice would be nice before I go and see an optometrist.

-Mr. Wigggles

Mr. Wigggles...

I am a family practice doc so I can't speak with absolute authority.....but here goes.

Night vision.....kinda depends on your eyes. The flap they cut is a certain diameter of the cornea since they can only cut so deep. If, when you are in the dark, your pupils dilate larger than that flap, some of the scarring may cause some light defraction which appears like halos or rays of light from things. This doesn't happen to many people because their eyes don't dilate that much.

Other procedures.....there used to be a procedure called PRK which was Lasik without the flap. That was used for lower prescription needs and I don't think it's used that much anymore.

New procedures.....there is a newer one where small curved plastic pieces are imlanted into the cornea, thus changing it's shape and correction your vision. This one has the benefit of being reversible. The downside is that it's only good for lower prescription corrections.

I would highly suggest getting an opinion from an ophthalmologist that does eye correction surgery. Usually the initial eval is free.

Hope that helps.

Sounds like that procedure would be more painful and take time to heal, no?

Got any links about it? I'd be more interested in that because I heard if your vision goes bad again, you can't have the eye surgery done twice?

Originally posted by Hercules
Sounds like that procedure would be more painful and take time to heal, no?

Got any links about it? I'd be more interested in that because I heard if your vision goes bad again, you can't have the eye surgery done twice?

Which procedure are you referring to? They are both very similar regarding pain and healing. The cornea is one of the most quickly healing tissues in the body.....corneal scratches can heal COMPLETELY in less than 24 hours.

Don't have any links for you right now....

Yep, you can have lasik more than once.

Complications, while rare (though no one is exactly sure what the true rate of complications is, or how to measure them) can have a devastating effect on your life. Check out www.surgicaleyes.org and ask yourself if you're willing to live with a bad outcome, and if the "inconvenience" of glasses or contacts makes that risk worthwhile. And though a good surgeon is helpful, it is no guarantee of a positive result.

One of the most difficult notions for people who haven't had the surgery to comprehend is that there is far more to good vision than acuity. You can have 20/20 (or better) acuity and horrible eyesight (for example, no or severly reduced night vision, photophobia, ghosts, double or triple vision, loss of contrast sensititivity, and other horrors), while in all probability most people who with poor acuity still have excellent eyesight.

Get good information, not just the PR pushed by the industry and surgeons. And remember, besides undercorrection, side effects of the prodedure cannot be treated. The operation is permanent.

edit: spelling!

One more thing to add. Don't go to your optometrist for consults about Lasik. Talk to an ophthalmologist.
If you are in Northern California I recommend:
http://eyeinfo.com/
Vince