OT: Lasic Eye Surgery

[Jim from Pa]

I am considering having Lasik surgery (scheduled for the 27th but not fully committed) and am asking for those of you that have had Lasik done to share your experience. As a member of this forum I value the information given from this site and the integrity of its members.I am only trying to collect unbiased honest information to aid in my decision and not seeking advice.
I would mostly like to know what your vision was like before and surgery and what your results and level of satisfaction are.
Thank you for any replies and I will post my decision and results if I elect to go thru with it. Jim

 

[Steve from MO - dangit!]

It's good for myopia and astigmatism. It lets people who used to wear thick glasses go without glasses; aging will eventually make them use reading glasses. Meanwhile, they can wear swim goggles, pilot helmets, and things like that. Doesn't work for presbyopia yet, otherwise I would have done it.

Wife had it done six years ago and vision result was excellent. She went from 20/75 to 20/20 in one eye and 20/15 in the other. She has distance vision in one and reading in the other. She had a real problem with dryness, but this happens mostly with women. GenTeal gel worked. Her eyes were brown before and now they are hazel.

Friend (female) at work had one eye done, no problem with dryness and excellent vision.

Another (female) friend had it done and needed four "tune-up" surgeries where they go back in and contour the lens a little more. She went from 20/185 to 20/20 with no dryness but the four tune-ups would have been a problem for me.

It's a gruesome operation but you don't watch since you're drugged up pretty well.

 

[Jay (ND)]

You'll never regret it. It's been 4 years or more for me now. I couldn't read an alarm clock across the room before, now I have 20/20 in each eye. 3 hours after surgery, I could read the license plates on taxis 7 floors below. Unbelievable. I understand the surgery is much better than when I had it, and the recovery time is less.

Jay

 

[Tim...OK]

3 years for me and no regrets..20/20 in both eyes..I seen halos pretty bad at night and had dryness issues,but both of those went away in about 6 months..the dryness isn't a really big deal,just a little annoying..I was just using the natural tear drops about 3 or 4 times a day..My wife was gonna get it done too until she watched mine being done on the monitor,she said no way in hell she'd do it after that..lol

best money I've ever spent in my opinion..

Tim

 

[rrlund]

I feel like such a wimp. Even my 82 year old mother had it done. I need it,but I've seen it on TV and like somebodys wife said above,no way in h*ll.THAT LOOKS BRUTAL!

 

[Anonymous-0]

Good question you raised. I've wondered the same thing. My eye guy says I'm a text book candidate. I guess it's time to "look" into the procedure.

 

[Jay (ND)]

It's not bad at all. The worse part is when they clamp your eyeball.

 

[rrlund]

I rest my case.

 

[Jim from Pa]

Thanks for the replies so far. I have been determined to be a good canidate with only a light myopia in each eye (- 3.25), a very slight astigmatism in my left eye and very
good corneal thickness. The closer I get to the operation date the colder my feet get. It seems most people that have it done have great results, but I am afraid of being that one statistic.
Doing an internet search can either scare the heck out of you or have you convinced that is the most perfect procedure in the world (just depends on what you want to find).
Thats why I posted my request here. I figured that I would get a better idea of peoples overall satisfaction from a demographic of people with similar lifestyle to mine.
Thanks again for those that have replied so far. Jim

 

[Jay (ND)]

The doc I went to had a complication rate of 2 or 3 per thousand, if I remember correctly. That doesn't mean failures. My brother was one of those statistics. He rubbed one of his eyes in his sleep the first night peeling back the lends and they had to re-set it, which probably doubled his full-recovery time. It wasn't the docs fault, but was in the statistics.

Don't worry about it.
Jay

 

[Jim from Pa]

Tim and Jay Thanks to you response. What was your perscription before surgery and did either of you wear contacts? Thanks Again Jim

 

[Jay (ND)]

Yep, I wore contacts. Don't miss them a bit either. My prescription was in that 20/200 range. My brothers was worse.

 

[Tramway Guy]

I had mine done in September 2005. I had been wearing glasses for almost 50 years, and now wear none, except for reading up close. My vision was worse than 20/600 (around -6.25) and this is not always a one-shot deal due to the amount of correction required....but I had an extremely experienced Doc with the newest equipment. I now in the neighborhood of 20/25 vision.
I have some dry eye issues, primarily in windy conditions.
I would do it again. Even for the $2800 it cost me. Yes, I could have had it done in Canada for a lot less, but I have heard a few horror stories about lack of follow-up care.

 

[Tim...OK]

Jim,
I don't remember what mine was before,but it wasn't too good.. I didn't dare drive without my glasses,couldn't read an alarm clock from 6 or 8 feet away..I had a_stigmatism pretty bad and near sighted..I had a couple pairs of contacts at different times,but for my prescription they were over $300 a pair,so I didn't wear them all the time..

I hate the filter on this site,I had a much longer response typed,but it kept rejecting it for no apparent reason..keep us posted

Tim

 

[Anonymous-0]

Laser surgery sets the eye focus for either distance or reading up close but not both. If you only get one done do the shootin' eye. Or if both are done for the same distance you will need glasses for the opposite distance. Plus people have trouble using just one eye while the other is open.....They had my wife wear a contact to simulate this when she went for the consultation.

 

[Jay (ND)]

My follow-up was fantastic up in Winnepeg. Doc Kadambi. A short chunky Indian (India) and a wonderful doctor.

 

[NEsota]

You asked for those with the experience for a response and I do not qualify. My neighbor is an Ophthalmologist and the kind of guy that likes to have the latest and greatest of everything. He wears moderate strength glasses. I heard that Ophthalmologists do not get the surgery themselves much. Have also been told that night vision can be negatively affected by the surgery. Personally, "if it isn’t broke don't fix it", works for me. Only wish that each of my physical defects could be minimalized by doing the equivalent of wearing glasses. Local high profile TV news anchor moved on to radio broadcast because of botched Lazic surgery.

 

[Jay (ND)]

My ophthalmologist won"t have it done either, but I believe it"s $$$, not the procedure. If his customers are getting this done, eye exams slow down, eyeglasses sales stop, etc.

"Have also been told that night vision can be negatively affected by the surgery."

Yep, for about 2 weeks.

 

[Badly Bent]

Jim, Lasic surgery was my Christmas present to my wife 3 years ago. She says it's the best present she ever got, and she sees better than she ever did with corrective lenses of any kind. Her night vision is actually BETTER than it was before the surgery. We didn't get the cheapest doctor to perform the surgery, but rather looked for the one with the best reputation. Another piece of advice; follow the doctor's instructions to the letter. As soon as I get the disposable income I want to have it done myself.

 

[Dug G.]

I had the procedure done back in 2004, and have been quite pleased. I have had some side effects in my night vision, but nothing significant enough to keep me from driving or walking in the woods at night. I had problems with near-sightedness, and am quite happy now with the results. I also occasionally get dry itchy eyes, but its quite rare. Fair warning, when they did my procedure I temporarily was blinded (by doctors choice), but it really freaked me out. If you have any more questions or concerns, feel free to contact me, email is open.

 

[NC Wayne]

I"ve know more than a few people that have done it and they all love it, at least for the time being. As for me I"m nearsighted and in the neighborhood of -4.75 in one eye and -5.75 in the other and have had glasses or contacts for nearly 30 years. Heck I"m used to them by now. I asked my eye doctor about lasik the other day and was told that at my age (39) and being nearsighted it wasn"t really worth it. Since as a mechanic I tend to work alot close up and was told that because of the way"s the eye typically ages within a few years I"d probably be back in glasses anyway, especially for closeup work. That being the case, to me, it just isn"t worth spending the money and taking the chance of having problems when I have no problems with the contacts I wear now. Don"t know if your wearing contacts now but I"ve worn a couple of the different styles of the Accuvue brand for nearly 15 years years and loved them. Recently had a problem that the doc said was due to lack of sufficient oxygen reaching the eye even though the lenses were designed to let the oxygen through. She changed my prescription to a new brand called Night and Day that are designed for up to 30 days wear without removal. It took me a few days for my eyes to adjust to the new lenses but now I"ve had a pair in for nearly 3 weeks and I can"t tell their on my eyes. I love them. Their a little over twice as expensive as the others but considering the comfort and extended wear time it"s worth it. The main thing is to talk to a trusted doctor and get an honest answer on what the benefits and problems will be and make a decision based on that. By the way my doctor is an extreemely attractive woman about my age and she wears glasses. She always wears the stylish frames and really knows how to make a pair of glasses look good. Good luck whatever decision you make.

 

[Anonymous-0]

Many friends have done it and all are tickeled to death with it.

I do not know what I'm talking about now but a cousins daughter did it --probably 20 year old. I think it was the eye drops after the surgery and a hour rest. The instructions said not to use drops with a certian --- say maybe it was a perservitive or something--she did not read the directions and the drops included this thing that was not supposed to be used. She actualy went totaly blind for a few hours, then she gained her sight back in a few days and is very happy she did it. She said that being blind is something she has a new respect for. She now wears saftey glasses when she needs to, and has no problem with coments of how dorkey they look.

 

[Anonymous-0]

My wife had Lasik done about 10 years ago, and she can still see 20-20 without other correction. She was extremely nearsighted and it was getting worse. It was to the point where she was going to have to wear contact lenses and glasses at the same time.

We were amazed how quickly the surgery was performed and how quickly she could see well. She could read a clock across the room from the operating table. There was very little pain from the surgery and the only problems she ever had was dry eyes, which might be caused by some of her other medical problems.

When my wife had the surgery, it was fairly new and very specialized. Insurance didn't pay a thing, as they considered it to be "cosmetic", and as I remember it cost between $5000 and $6000. But my wife has been delighted with it and thinks it was worth much more than we paid for it.

One of our daughters had Lasik and it worked OK for her, although they had to touch up one eye with a second procedure. But my wife's brother had a terrible time with his Lasik, actually going blind in one eye for awhile, and wondering if it was going to force him to retire. He definitely would not do it again, but I wonder if he might have not chosen the best eye surgeon. He didn't pay very much for his multiple procedures.

Personally, I have worn glasses almost all my life, and my distance vision has pretty much stayed the same, while my close vision has gone to pot. I have to have my trifocals! And considering how many times glasses have protected my eyes from something falling into them, I think they are the right thing for me. I tried contacts when I was a kid and they nearly drove me crazy. Glasses are just too easy, practical and cheap for me to choose anything else.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[Jim from Pa]

Wow all very good responses exactly what I hoped to get here. Thanks again to all and I will post my descision and outcome. Jim

 

[Jim from Pa]

Wayne my situation is just about the same as yours. I am a machinist and need to see up close as well. I'm 44 and had been wearing the acuvue2 contacts without any real problems for about 10 years. I usually (although not the smartest thing to do) leave my contacts in as long as 2 months at a time with no real problems. My options are to have the surgery and hope it turn out as wished or go back to contacts and if I do try the better 30 day lenses and be a little more cautious with my eyes. Thanks and I will let everyone know what I decide and how it turns out. Jim

 

[Tim...OK]

Higgins,
thats true in some people,it all depends on their initial problem..not the case with mine and several others I know that have done it..my up close (reading) was fine before the procedure,but my distance vision was terrible,my distance is now 20/20 and my up close is better than it was before.. not trying to argue,but I couldn't be happier with mine.. I think the worst thing for me has been to get myself in the habit of wearing safety glasses when grinding etc.. All my life I've always already had glasses on my face..so thats taken a little getting used to..

 

[Anonymous-0]

Had it done around 9 or 10 years ago. I was -8.00 in both eyes with some astigmatism(legally blind). I wore contacts for about 10 years prior to that. They couldn't make glasses good enough to correct without severe distortion - like looking in one of those spherical mirrors. Cost $2000 per eye. To me , it was worth ten times that. For months afterwards I would wake up saying "Hey, I can see!" My vision is 20/15 in one eye and 20/30 in the other. If I remember correctly, the limits they could measure was 20/400, and I was worse than that.

After surgery they taped plastic shields on my eyes and sent me home. The next morning they took off the shields and my wife and I went shopping. Except I could see better than I EVER could before. I wore safety glasses night and day for a few weeks because you would be amazed how many times you try to stick your finger in your own eye in a day.

I don't know if the procedure is the same nowadays, but the hardest part was when I had to stare at a focal point for a whole minute (per eye) without looking off. That's about how long the laser zapping part took. May have taken ten minutes altogether. I think the main thing is to go to someone reputable who has done it for a long time. It was relatively new when I had it done, but I went to a guy who had done a couple thousand.

Good luck with whatever you decide. Holler if you want any more detail than that.