Laser Eye Surgery. Whos done it?

[Imported]

No, they are not risk-free. Prolonged use can impact corneal thickness and cause keratoconus:

http://www.healio.com/news/print/oc...ively-impacts-corneal-thickness-and-curvature

Interesting article. I couldn't wear contacts for the 2 months before my surgery. I wonder if being a contact lens wearer for 10+ years had that affect on my corneas.

 

[poofyhairguy]

I bet. Contacts can cause some bad abrasions sometimes too.

 

[OutHouse]

I'm scared of this but i'm saving up for it. I'm at $2k now, when i get to $4k-5k i'll start talking to the lasik doctors.

I've only know a handful of people who did this and they all have been great. I've also heard it cost roughly $5-8k.

i had mine done at a well known Lasik center in denver, John Elway and many other professional athletes had their eyes done at the center and mine cost me 800 per eye. you should have enough. 5K is a bit much.

 

[Wingznut]

I searched all the places I could find to get a handle on a good doctor. I paid $4ooo, which (I think) is on the high end. Undoubtedly, I could've found someplace cheaper, but I wanted to go with someone I had a lot of confidence in, price was secondary.

 

[yuku]

Wanted to, but turned out my cornea is too thin for the existing technology

In that case, you can choose lens implantation which is what i want to do, since the surgery is reversible. But it may also have some complications.

 

[yuku]

I want my wife to get eye surgery, but we both worry about the risks vs reward.

I want her to be able to see like I do. I'm 33 and wear no contacts/glasses. Neither of my parents worse glasses until they were in their 40s.

I worry about that the surgery may cause birth defects.

 

[T2urtle]

i had mine done at a well known Lasik center in denver, John Elway and many other professional athletes had their eyes done at the center and mine cost me 800 per eye. you should have enough. 5K is a bit much.

That is a great deal if all went well. But like mentioned before here, I'm a little worried about those centers. They are more of a get u in/out types. Nice that Elway was there, but I'm sure u didn't get the same doctor as he.

Wanna throw out a name here or by PM. I would like to look into it. Hell a trip to Denver and LASIK isn't that bad sounding.

I'm in Chicago a big market for this as well.

 

[poofyhairguy]

Nice that Elway was there, but I'm sure u didn't get the same doctor as he.

Exactly. They get a famous guy done by their top doc who has already retired to bermuda and handed the reins to an out of residency kid. Avoid the centers.

Doctors have to pay per surgery (per eye actually) in their equipment contracts for the nicest and most modern equipment, so I would avoid any place cheaper than $1500 an eye.

 

[Malodrik]

I have terrible eyesight, both eyes are at about -4.75; I've been told repeatedly that I shouldn't even be crossing the street without my glasses. With that being said, I have no problem using corrective lenses for the foreseeable future. I'd rather wait until I feel fully comfortable financially and emotionally getting the procedure; I'm an extremely anxious person at the best of times.

 

[Wingznut]

I'd rather wait until I feel fully comfortable financially and emotionally getting the procedure...

Absolutely the right attitude.

 

[moonbogg]

Well, I got it done today. They did lasik in both eyes and cut the flap with another laser machine. The pain that followed the procedure was a kind of pain that I never knew existed. It felt like, and i'm not exaggerating, someone squirt acid in my eyes and stuck some needles in them for good measure. On the way home (my wife driving me) the pain was so severe that I felt I couldn't breathe and I started to panic, because it was well beyond my ability to cope and I knew it wasn't going away any time soon. This was bad, but it passed in a few hours.
I'm happy to report that I can see really well now, despite the haze that is expected for a few days or so. The procedure itself was very shocking, the part i'm talking about was the laser eye flap cutting machine. Very painful and rough was the process, as they smashed a glass cup ontop of your eye until you went blind in it just before cutting. The pressure they smashed with caused the eye to see no light. The doctor warned me by simply saying, "Pressure, no light". I was like, "huh?" And then came the "FUCK WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
Anyway, hopefully I heal up properly as I don't think the post OP pain is normal. At least I can see.
Would I recommend it to someone? Honestly, I can't take the risk of someone enduring that kind pain at my recommendation, for any reason. It was that bad.

 

[nickbits]

When I had it done the first time I don't recall much pain but when they redid mine, I had bad pain overnight, like there was 100 needles poking in my eyes. However that pain pales in comparison to what I experienced when I had the corneal ulcer this year. Worst pain I ever experienced. Taking 10mg of hydrocodone every 4hr just took the edge off. Never thought eyes could cause so much pain. But I guess it isn't surprising given how uncomfortable contacts are if there is a bit of crud behind the lense.

 

[nickbits]

Also my vision was great for the first few months but hopefully it sticks for you.

 

[Imported]

That's crazy. I don't remember that much pain when I got PRK. It was more of a disturbing thought of what was going on. I'm surprised you're even able to type. I think I was knocked out for a good two days staying in the dark.

 

[moonbogg]

That's crazy. I don't remember that much pain when I got PRK. It was more of a disturbing thought of what was going on. I'm surprised you're even able to type. I think I was knocked out for a good two days staying in the dark.

The pain was unbelievable, but went away a few hours later and felt only like sand was in my eyes. Now they feel nearly healed with only minor discomfort, only about 8 hours later. Vision is A-OK. And yes, I am breaking the rules by using my computer.

 

[Wingznut]

Well, I got it done today. They did lasik in both eyes and cut the flap with another laser machine. The pain that followed the procedure was a kind of pain that I never knew existed. It felt like, and i'm not exaggerating, someone squirt acid in my eyes and stuck some needles in them for good measure. On the way home (my wife driving me) the pain was so severe that I felt I couldn't breathe and I started to panic, because it was well beyond my ability to cope and I knew it wasn't going away any time soon. This was bad, but it passed in a few hours.
I'm happy to report that I can see really well now, despite the haze that is expected for a few days or so. The procedure itself was very shocking, the part i'm talking about was the laser eye flap cutting machine. Very painful and rough was the process, as they smashed a glass cup ontop of your eye until you went blind in it just before cutting. The pressure they smashed with caused the eye to see no light. The doctor warned me by simply saying, "Pressure, no light". I was like, "huh?" And then came the "FUCK WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
Anyway, hopefully I heal up properly as I don't think the post OP pain is normal. At least I can see.
Would I recommend it to someone? Honestly, I can't take the risk of someone enduring that kind pain at my recommendation, for any reason. It was that bad.

That doesn't sound right at all. I had absolutely zero pain during the procedure. After the medicine wore off, it felt like I had just had cut some supernatural onion. I couldn't keep my eyes open on the trip home. Took a Hydrocodeine on the way home, slept for a few hours, and no pain when I awoke.

• Did they sedate you prior to the procedure?
• Did they put numbing drops in?
• Did you take any pain killers after?
• Did they give you a prescription for steroid eye drops and antibiotic eye drops?
• "Pressure, no light"... WTF is that? Did the guy not speak English or something? Did you research the facility/doctor?

And yes, I am breaking the rules by using my computer.

Really? Why would you blatently disregard the doctor's orders??? Such a bad idea.

 

[kevman]

I want to do it. I'm just a paranoid fuck! surgery on any other part of my body? no fucking problem hell i want to watch.

my head? fuck no. knock my ass out. I am scared of fucking it up adn being blind

im exactly the same way. i even chickened out when i has it scheduled the day before. meanwhile my wife got it done in 2000 and never had an issue with.

 

[kevman]

is there a merit to bladeless procedures that they do nowadays? is it true you can never rub your eyes after u get this done?

 

[Wingznut]

is there a merit to bladeless procedures that they do nowadays? is it true you can never rub your eyes after u get this done?

From lasik.com...

" Both Bladed LASIK and Bladeless LASIK are proven safe and effective, but the bladeless femtosecond procedure has a number of important advantages. Bladeless LASIK, for example, has a lower risk of corneal flap complications.

Some LASIK patients need a second procedure, which laser eye surgeons call a “touch up” or an “enhancement.” Bladeless LASIK allows for a safer enhancement should it be needed. In a recent study, patients whose eye surgeon used a microkeratome blade for their original LASIK eye surgery were shown to have higher risk for a serious complication, called epithelial ingrowth, than those whose eye surgeon had used a bladeless femtosecond laser. "

As for rubbing your eyes, you can only not rub them for ~1 week, while the flap heals.

 

[moonbogg]

They used a laser to cut the flap, and that was the "pressure, no light" experience from hell. There is now perfect red circles around my eyes, showing where the laser cut. And cut it certainly did. They used a modern wavefront lasik machine which is newer technology than the more common type. Supposedly less side effects like halos at night etc with the new tech. As of now my vision is perfect and it only feels like I have some lint in my eye or something as well as slightly cloudy from the healing. I don't expect to need touch ups due to the quality of vision so soon after the operation. It worked, but good god almighty, I paid a painful price to get here.
They gave me Tylenol with codeine and basically said "Take it if it hurts. See you tomorrow for your follow up". They also kept offering me Xanax before the operation and I wondered why. I declined it, but now it makes perfect sense. The surgeon spoke English as a second language, but he was all business and was good enough to not boil my eyes into a pile of mush.
I'd recommend the procedure as long as you are well aware of the fact that you may find yourself in a degree of pain that you didn't realize your body was capable of feeling. It cost $4k. Small price for perfect eyes.

 

[tHa ShIzNiT]

Always wanted to do this but I think I'll stick with the glasses for now after reading that. I used to hate carrying around regular glasses and sunglasses everywhere but now I have transitions, so I just have to deal with the "looking like a nerd" part of it.

 

[KidNiki1]

yeah, i have to ask, were you given anything prior to the procedure to numb the eye area or anything?

if not, then that doesnt sound right to me. AT ALL.

 

[moonbogg]

Always wanted to do this but I think I'll stick with the glasses for now after reading that. I used to hate carrying around regular glasses and sunglasses everywhere but now I have transitions, so I just have to deal with the "looking like a nerd" part of it.

I'll be honest. If I knew how bad it was going to hurt, i'm not sure I could have brought myself to go through with it. To be fair, most people I hear from didn't have pain like that. It seems to be the exception rather than the rule for lasik.

 

[moonbogg]

yeah, i have to ask, were you given anything prior to the procedure to numb the eye area or anything?

if not, then that doesnt sound right to me. AT ALL.

Yes, the eyes were totally numb during the OP. The pressure was uncomfortable, but easily tolerable. The real pain came after the numbness went away from the numbing eye drops. It started hurting about 10 minutes after the OP and the pain escalated steadily for about 45 minutes, then held stead for about 2-3 hours. I went home, managed to fall asleep at some point and when I woke up the worst was well over and it only felt like I had sand in my eyes at that point.

 

[KidNiki1]

Yes, the eyes were totally numb during the OP. The pressure was uncomfortable, but easily tolerable. The real pain came after the numbness went away from the numbing eye drops. It started hurting about 10 minutes after the OP and the pain escalated steadily for about 45 minutes, then held stead for about 2-3 hours. I went home, managed to fall asleep at some point and when I woke up the worst was well over and it only felt like I had sand in my eyes at that point.

wow, that sucks.