your experience with Lasik?

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Hi BITOGers,

I have been wearing glasses from '85. (with the "shapes" on the nose and ears to prove it).

Did you had it better after Lasik/Eye correction surgery?

Any secondary symptoms? (sensitivity to bright light/night vision)
 
I know Lasik is the "go-to" method of vision correction these days... but when I was in the Navy the only allowed vision correction for Navy pilots was PRK. It's a little more involved, but seems to have fewer side effects like halos and sensitivity. I know it's not the boutique solution these days, but IMHO if Navy pilots need 20/20 uncorrected and PRK was the only answer they would accept, it should be good enough for my land-based activities should I ever need vision help
smile.gif


PRK vs. LASIK
 
I had Lasik 15 years ago for nearsightedness I was told that in 10 or 20 years that i may need to wear glasses again.

Up until this past year all was good but my reading vision has gotten bad. I am wearing non prescription reading glasses now for all things near.

The first couple of years I saw halos at night but that went away.

I had major complications after the surgery. I was prescribed antibiotics and anti inflammatories etc. The pharmacy gave me the wrong prescriptions and i had a [censored] of a time for about 2 weeks. So whomever is taking care of you after the surgery i recommend that they pay close attention to your medications..as you will not be able to see for a day or three. Probably a rare incident.

Would i do it again? Yes. 15 years with no glasses has been great.
 
best thing i ever did. I also was wearing contacts. so in terms of eye health the lasik is better overall thsn the daily irritant of thr contacts.
the navy thing is different as it is dated and beuracratic. the lasik tech gets upgrades every few years just like computers. So the tech is best that it can be and better than it was 5years ago.
If you want a different datapoint you can consider how many NFL NBA MLB PGA or tennis players go for lasik (not prk) as their multimillion livelihoods depend on their eyes, and they could choose the best option irregardless of price.

Many of the doctors will list off how many pro athletes they have done and or have signed letters of gratitude framed in their office.

there is recovery period and some side effects (drynes, night , altitude changes). But overall do not regret. When I wake up I thank my eyeballs almost everyday.

It is also agreed thst eventually your eyes will age and change again as you reach middle age. If your prescription is stable the sooner you do the lasik the longer you reap the benefits.

The first step is for you to talk with your optometrist for a lasik recommendation and/or to just go see a lasik doctoe for a free consultation to see if you are a good candidate, a marginal candidate or not recommended. everyones eye situation is different.
Then you can go asking for experiences.
 
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For those who have had, or considering, Lasik, what does it cost? Is it per eye or do both need to be done? I'd love to get rid of my glasses but I'm not sure we could afford it. Thanks.
 
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I had Lasik about 15 years ago and it worked, but I had side effects with night vision that still bother me.
Bright objects (like traffic lights) against a dark background caused ghosting, basically double vision that only occurs in certain circumstances. I used to love to look at the night sky and that doesn't really work anymore, it's hard to play outfield under the lights, etc.
I told the doctor who performed the surgery about it and he swore that he had never heard of it before and that I didn't have double vision because it didn't happen all the time...I could type "ghosting" into google at the time and have hundreds of hits. Basically, my doctor was a massive jerk who lied and denied.
I will admit that I didn't help my own healing process by going for a long bike ride with ski goggles on...doctor OKed the ride with goggles, but he probably didn't mean vented goggles like I used. I was experiencing ghosting before that and I suspect it wouldn't have gone away even without the ride.
This was back in the day of using a blade to make the initial cut, I think that is done with a laser these days and probably heals a lot cleaner.
I was probably a poor candidate for the surgery as I was almost turned away at my initial eval because they couldn't get a good scan due to my large irises and pupils...they finally got something they thought was good after many tries, but I probably should have just left at that point.
It's great to not have to wear glasses, but the ghosting is a PITA to this day. Can't really do anything short of another surgery to try to fix it...
 
Best thing I have ever done.. got it done 6 years ago at the Lasik Plus in Oak Brook- great facility and doctors if you aren't far from there. I do have more sensitivity to light, mostly with sunny/hazy days. I find that I wear sunglasses more often. Also, there are times when I feel like putting on sunglasses while driving at night due to the oncoming headlights, but that is dependent upon how tired I am.

Irregardless, it is life-changing, for the better!
 
regarding the navy thing
wavefront guided lasik approved all the way back in 2004. So the point that military only allows PRK only is outdated.

https://archive.is/20120728134939/http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123009161


Regarding 1eye vs 2eye. they can do 1 eye at a time, but is is more convenient to just do both. It would be like changing 1 tire at a rime.

With lasik you can take peeks immediately after surgery and still see, but its recommened you just go to bed that afternoon and then you will be able to see the next morning. Some take a weekend or a long weekend to recover. your eyes will be a little sore and tire easier as they are recovering.

For insurance or tax purposes they can get creative with the billing and split the billimg across calendar years if you plan it arouns yearend (often even if you got it dome in 1 say)
 
Wife had it done in 2007 by one of the best in Texas - Dr. Booth. He did all the NFL players, movei stars etc. Did a great job for her.....however, this year she had to get glasses because Lasik is NOT A PERMANENT procedure. You will get an average of 10 years out of it then be back into glasses and you cannot get it done again.
 
Originally Posted By: raytseng
regarding the navy thing
wavefront guided lasik approved all the way back in 2004. So the point that military only allows PRK only is outdated.


I DID say "back when I was in the Navy"... which was pre-2004. After I got out, I obviously didn't keep tabs on military-approved medical procedures. Thanks for the update though.
 
Originally Posted By: GMBoy
Wife had it done in 2007 by one of the best in Texas - Dr. Booth. He did all the NFL players, movei stars etc. Did a great job for her.....however, this year she had to get glasses because Lasik is NOT A PERMANENT procedure. You will get an average of 10 years out of it then be back into glasses and you cannot get it done again.



Had it done almost 15 years ago ,one eye for distance one for reading Doc said if I didn't like it come back and we will make both the same .
Tayfore in ontario canada.
 
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The cost is all over the board. A lot od it is paying for the doctor preop consultatuons and followups if something should go wrong.

With the modern tech, the machine is doing the majority of the complex work when all goes well, the skilled doctor is there just when thing dont going well. The point is technically you should get the same result with the same machine regardless of the physical dexterity and skill of doctor. However if they did not prep you correctly or chose the wrong treatment for you then you have potential for negative outcomes.

The minimum price is probably around $500per eye, the maximum high end around $3000per eye. Like all healthcare, insurance, hsa, taxes, and financing also get involved.

Google and find out.

I believe the way it works is the lasik machine costs (like car parts) is billed around $250/$300 per usage to the doctor so this is the absolute floor. The
rest of the cost is from the doctor and their practice.
In comparison though most healthcare like your eye checkup and dentist has basically near zero parts cost, it is all the practice.
 
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Originally Posted By: GMBoy
Wife had it done in 2007 by one of the best in Texas - Dr. Booth. He did all the NFL players, movei stars etc. Did a great job for her.....however, this year she had to get glasses because Lasik is NOT A PERMANENT procedure. You will get an average of 10 years out of it then be back into glasses and you cannot get it done again.


+1 They didn't tell me that it wasn't permanent
 
it depends on your eyeballs and your natural aging. 10years isnt the right way to describe it. The issue its that your eyes change again around mid40s and 60s as you get older. So the right way to descrube it is you will get to your mid 40s before your eyes go.

The being able to cut again is like brake rotors. if there is not enough cornea to do a second procedure they can't do it. this depens on your natural cornea thickness and how much correction you needed originally as well as how much subsequently.

Not all is lost, you can also hope 10 or 20years doen the line there will br a nee technique like lens implant that will be avail then
 
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Is Lasik apprpriate for both nearsighted and farsighted conditions? I need help at distances plus help with reading magnification.

EDIT: Well I did some Google searching for costs. It's all over the place and depends on what type of surgery you get, or the process used. $4000 - $5000 seems to be an average, assuming no complications. Medicare won't cover it so I guess I'll be wearing glasses until I meet my maker. It could be worse, I could have no eyesight at all. For that I am truly grateful.
 
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Originally Posted By: GMBoy
Wife had it done in 2007 by one of the best in Texas - Dr. Booth. He did all the NFL players, movei stars etc. Did a great job for her.....however, this year she had to get glasses because Lasik is NOT A PERMANENT procedure. You will get an average of 10 years out of it then be back into glasses and you cannot get it done again.



This is quite true. I had LASIK in 2006 and it lasted only about 5 years for me. I could’ve got an enhancement but I don’t like the thoughts of repeated surgery on my eyes. I went back to glasses. I regret having it done considering what it costs and how long it lasted.
 
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