Lasik -- Would You Recommend?

I have no idea what category this belongs in, since we don't have anything for medical topics, so here it is.

Has anyone else done Lasik surgery?? I'm so freaking sick of wearing glasses, but I have many allergies that affect my eyes, so contact lenses probably won't work for me. I suspect they would be an exercise in constant pain and irritation, and my optometrist thought I was probably right about that. At the time, I didn't think to ask her about Lasik.

So the question is, would I be a good candidate for Lasik, or would my allergies tie into the one possible after-effect of the surgery that worries me: dry eyes? I don't want to inadvertently turn my eyes into the Sahara.

I'm seriously considering doing this so I can go back to needing reading glasses only, but I'm concerned.

Thoughts?

I had lasik back in 2000 and have never looked back blurrily (no glasses needed since). I have pretty bad allergies too and Lasik did not affect anything . Only your eye doctor can tell you if you are a "good candidate", mainly (I think) by looking at the shape of your eyes and severity of your lack of clear sight. Can't hurt to get evaluated. If you are a "good candidate", I highly recommend getting the procedure - the only thing that should be affected is your vision (for the better).

Ooooo, I will find an ophthalmologist locally and ask. My eyes are pretty much fine except for the allergy thing and a very, very slight astigmatism. My prescription isn't extreme, either, but it's annoying not to be able to read street signs from a good distance away any more. Even more annoying, however, is the glasses themselves, which frustrate me beyond description, especially in summer when any work that causes perspiration causes the glasses to live on the end of my nose. UGH.

Next question would be whether Medicare covers it at all. H'mm. Time for some serious research.

And thank you!

PeggyC said:

Next question would be whether Medicare covers it at all. H'mm. Time for some serious research.

No

Also, just found this with a very quick Google:

Dry eyes: Patients with dry eye symptoms, such as burning,
redness, and tearing may have worse symptoms after LASIK surgery. This
occurs because corneal nerves are cut during this procedure, and these
nerves are partly responsible for stimulating tear secretion. Most
patients have a full return back to their baseline state after surgery;
however, patients with significant dry eye before surgery may not be
appropriate surgical candidates

I'm thinking I should just try to find glasses that fit better. *sigh* Well, it was worth asking.

MJH, thanks for that. I suspected as much, and although the costs don't seem to be prohibitive, it's worth considering. Still, the dry eye is more worrying.

Although always good (and once again, can't hurt) to consult an actual doctor vs. Doctor Interweb.

Yes, I agree. And I will... but not until my next annual exam. Doesn't seem worth making a special appointment to discuss if I think the answer is likely to be no. But I'll keep it in mind come January!

I believe one factor to be considered depends on the thickness of your corneas. Just my luck, when I inquired a number of years ago, the only thing about me that is extremely thin are my corneas (and usually, the older you are the thinner they become)

We had Lasik done this winter for a family member. The ophthalmologists recommended Dr Perl, Corneal Associates of NJ. We were very happy with the results.

There are three steps

1. Test and map your eyes. Takes over an hour.

2. Do the LASIK. The actual procedure is about 15 minutes.

3. Follow up exams. If there is an issue such as vision not being 20/20, they will redo the operation for fine correction.

www.cornealassociates.com

http://cornealassociates.com/lasik/lasik-options/ifs-all-laser/

Better fitting frames seems to be a safer option at least until you speak with an opthamologist. In the meanwhile have you tried the cord that has slits for the ends of your frames and secures the frames around your neck if/when the frames try slipping off your nose when your chin is bent in a downward position?

I had a PRSK procedure back in 1998, as Lasik back then was not yet the norm. I was nearsighted since I was 9 years old and my eyesight was getting really bad, to the point of having to put on my glasses in the morning to see the time on the alarm clock. By luck I happen to overheard a conversation among two colleagues were they discussed getting the procedure at no charge as it had been mistakenly made part of our health plan at the time. The insurance company was going to change the plan in the upcoming year. It was December. I interrupted their conversation and asked for her doctor. I did some research on him, made an appointment and 2 weeks later I did the procedure. At 24yrs old, just out of college, and on my own I would not have been able to afford it otherwise. The procedure went well although unlike Lasik I was home and in discomfort for about 3 days. I still remember two days after the surgery opening my eyes and being able to see the individual pieces of clothing in my closet. Best thing I have done for myself. Totally worth it. Would do it all over again in a heartbeat.

joan_crystal said:
Better fitting frames seems to be a safer option at least until you speak with an opthamologist. In the meanwhile have you tried the cord that has slits for the ends of your frames and secures the frames around your neck if/when the frames try slipping off your nose when your chin is bent in a downward position?

I agree about the safer option, and I have not tried the cord around the back of the head yet. I might do that and see if I can tolerate how it feels. And I will look into the lightest, best-fitting pair of frames I can find. Maybe even go back to frameless.

I do know that a lot of people are real fans of the procedure... just have to be as sure as possible that my dry eyes won't make it a torture I can't back away from once it's done. I like to err on the side of caution in things like this.

Calli, that is really unfortunate. No one has ever commented on the state of my corneas, but I will ask at my next exam and see what they say. I suspect they would have suggested it the last time I was there because I said something about contacts, and they agreed those would not be a good bet — if Lasik had been better, I have a feeling they would have mentioned it.

Depending on the cause of your dry eyes, that can also eliminate you as a candidate for Lasik. http://www.theeyecarecenter.com/pdf/LASIK_guidelines.pdf

Yeah, that is very similar to something I posted above from another site. I am pretty sure my dry eyes are due to allergic reactions, but unless I give up my four cats, I don't think that situation is likely to change. I guess I have a choice: Cats or Lasik.

I was told that at my age...not so great. Can't remember why.

I would not suggest it at your age. You never know what is around the corner and the technique requires a certain thickness of your cornea.

I had it done around 7 years ago. I was extremely nearsighted and could no longer wear contacts. I had an astigmatism as well. My eyes changed on a regular basis. They suggested mono-vision -- which is a different correction in each eye so that I would not require reading glasses after the procedure.

Everything went smoothly... My eyes continued to change each year a little bit astigmatism and nearsightedness .. 7 years later my two eyes have wildly different prescriptions to the point where I am back in glasses on a regular basis. Drs suggested a further laser correction but I would not proceed at this point.

I would also make sure to not fudge the criteria as it results in bad outcomes. I have avoided Lasik since I almost fit into too many exclusions - my prescription was not that stable until recently, my eyes are dry....

Also, the financial incentives for eye doctors really encourage the procedure since once they have the equipment, the non-fixed cost of one procedure is quite low (thus the profitability once the machine has been paid for is quite high) and quirks in malpractice laws protect them in case of bad outcomes.

maplegal said:
I would not suggest it at your age. You never know what is around the corner and the technique requires a certain thickness of your cornea.
I had it done around 7 years ago. I was extremely nearsighted and could no longer wear contacts. I had an astigmatism as well. My eyes changed on a regular basis. They suggested mono-vision -- which is a different correction in each eye so that I would not require reading glasses after the procedure.

Everything went smoothly... My eyes continued to change each year a little bit astigmatism and nearsightedness .. 7 years later my two eyes have wildly different prescriptions to the point where I am back in glasses on a regular basis. Drs suggested a further laser correction but I would not proceed at this point.

My husband's godfather went back to school and became an optician at the age of 60 (he worked until he was 81!). He had major conniptions when one of his daughters had Lasik: having learned so much of the eye anatomy he thought it was too chancy to play around with precious vision. She, on the other hand, had a great outcome and loved not having to wear glasses again.

My brother had it done about 15 years ago; he claimed it was great, but my SIL confided to me that he had major problems with halos for well over six months. The worst is a horror story of a Maplewood woman who went blind. Her elderly mother who told me about it has since passed away, and I can't remember if she said that both eyes were affected or just one.

I was told my eye size and shape was not a good match for Lasik or PRSK by a doctor from Marano Eye Ctr. who regularly did them.

If you are at all interested, don't wait until January when you'll have to fulfill a new deductible.

Excellent use of emoticons there, musicmz.

Yeah - I love them!

Hope I wasn't too much of a Gloomy Gus --- I tend to look on the dark side of things, yet people think I am very cheerful and optimistic.

No, I appreciate comments on the down side as well as those that are more enthusiastic. I want a realistic idea of what I might expect, given my specifics. And I think my specifics lean pretty far away from doing it. Which is disappointing, but that's the way it goes.

If you are already a patient in a practice, is it possible to make a phone inquiry whereby they could consult your records and at least give you some idea about whether it is worth pursuing?

Maybe... but since I moved two years ago, there are only two years' worth of eye exams there. Although I don't think much changed from year to year before that.

Still doesn't get around the allergy/dry eye issue, which worries me.

I probably need to visit them anyway in the near future, for a problem with my existing glasses. They have a pair of small magnetic dots on the lenses that grab onto corresponding dots on a pair of sunglass accessories, and one of the "dots" came off the glasses. *sigh*

Going back to my original post, why isn't there a category for health-related threads? There are a LOT of those questions and concerns on this board. Seems like they could use their own space.

Re the magnetic dot problem, have you tried using non-prescription clip-ons that fit over your frames?

No. I'm afraid of scratching the lenses, and I really hate how the traditional clip-ons look. I'm more likely to find a pair of the gigantic sunglasses that cover the whole frame of regular glasses, so you are basically layering glasses. But I'll give the optometrist a call and see if their vision center can replace the dot. You never know.

PeggyC said:
No. I'm afraid of scratching the lenses, and I really hate how the traditional clip-ons look. I'm more likely to find a pair of the gigantic sunglasses that cover the whole frame of regular glasses, so you are basically layering glasses. But I'll give the optometrist a call and see if their vision center can replace the dot. You never know.

There are sunglasses designed to wear over regular glasses and I have several pairs. But if I were in your situation I would definitely try to get the dot restored if possible.

sac said:

PeggyC said:
No. I'm afraid of scratching the lenses, and I really hate how the traditional clip-ons look. I'm more likely to find a pair of the gigantic sunglasses that cover the whole frame of regular glasses, so you are basically layering glasses. But I'll give the optometrist a call and see if their vision center can replace the dot. You never know.

There are sunglasses designed to wear over regular glasses and I have several pairs. But if I were in your situation I would definitely try to get the dot restored if possible.

Yeah, I've seen them at drugstores, and I even used to own a pair. But I will try to get the dot replaced first. Seems silly not to try, since I still have the sunglasses that go with the dots.

I have prescription sunglasses. I love them.