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immakiku posted:Question about pro: I'm a little late here but I don't believe there is any downside to PRK other than healing time. I grilled numerous people working at the clinic and they all kept pushing me to get LASIK but not a single one could tell me why. They all just said, "because your corneas are good enough for LASIK" or told me it would hurt less. I'm guessing most people get LASIK because the doctors push it so hard and I think they push it hard because it costs more. Either that or they really care about healing time I got PRK and I wouldn't go back and get LASIK. The first two days were absolutely miserable and the two after that were pretty uncomfortable but that was about it. It was a bit of a pain to take care of with the eye shields and the baby shampoo and all that but I didn't mind being inconvenienced for two weeks knowing I'd have flapless eyeballs that can see clearly for the rest of my life. Edit: I suppose PRK may have a higher rate of complications which would explain why no one would answer my questions properly. That's something you can ask your doctor about. JGTheSpy fucked around with this message at 19:41 on Jun 24, 2011 |
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Jun 24, 2011 19:29
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Beep Street posted:Monkeybot have you always had dry eyes? I'm guessing the answer is yes but it's never something I really ever noticed. I've never used eye drops regularly except for the time 4 years ago or so I was told to by my eye doctor and even that was just for a couple months. I think I'm just used to it.
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Jun 27, 2011 16:52
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MonkeyBot posted:I'm guessing the answer is yes but it's never something I really ever noticed. I've never used eye drops regularly except for the time 4 years ago or so I was told to by my eye doctor and even that was just for a couple months. I think I'm just used to it. Likewise. Didn't know until they told me I did.
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Jun 28, 2011 07:04
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So this thread is getting long but I figure I'll put in experience as well, the more the merrier.
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Jun 28, 2011 14:39
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I have a question for the pro's in the thread. I had PRK done about a year and half ago. Everything went smoothly, and 3 weeks after the surgery I felt that my eyes had stabilized. However I noticed that with both eyes open, my left seemed weaker than the right--nothing serious, but enough to be noticeable and annoying when using a computer. I called the surgeon and he said come back in a year, your eyes are probably still stabilizing. Well cut to today, where my eyes are about the same as they were 3 weeks after the surgery. I went back in to the surgeon, they put drops in and did a checkup, and his verdict was that my right eye is much weaker than my left eye, which causes it to overcompensate and manifest itself as weaker vision in my left eye when both are open. He recommended to do PRK again to touch it up. I'm OK with doing the surgery again, but my question is: how did this happen in the first place? It's not my eyes degenerating, as I noticed it right away after surgery. It seems the surgery wasn't done 100% right. But any idea as to what exactly went wrong, so that I can mention it to my surgeon when I get a touch-up? I'm really just curious as to how this seemingly foolproof and computer-guided technique managed to botch things.
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Jun 28, 2011 21:59
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I had lasik about 3 months ago, I was -8 in 1 eye and -9 in the other, now I'm 20/20. Whats odd is my eye that was worse before the lasik is actually a bit better than the other one now after it.
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Jun 29, 2011 05:48
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sliceoftoast posted:I'm OK with doing the surgery again, but my question is: how did this happen in the first place? It's not my eyes degenerating, as I noticed it right away after surgery. It seems the surgery wasn't done 100% right. But any idea as to what exactly went wrong, so that I can mention it to my surgeon when I get a touch-up? I'm really just curious as to how this seemingly foolproof and computer-guided technique managed to botch things. There are a couple things at play here. First and most importantly of all, everyone's corneas heal differently. Surgeons do their best to get your prescription as close to zero as possible, but depending on how the tissue heals immediately following the surgery, there may be a bit of slippage that causes your prescription to be non-zero. Corneal healing post-surgery can be impacted by a lot of things, including the kinds of medicated drops being used, the environment you find yourself in, and simply biological processes. Second, and this is related to the first, surgeons often try to anticipate the backsliding by overshooting a little bit on the final prescription. That is, they tend to overcorrect and make the patient more hyperopic (far-sighted) since the backslide tends to be towards the myopic (near-sighted). This is common practice and usually works just fine, but sometimes, like in your case, there is not as much backsliding and the patient ends up a little bit hyperopic. The problem with hyperopia is that when you're young, the eyes are able to change focus and overcome the prescription in the eye so that you can still see clearly without glasses. However, the eyes cannot do this independently of each other, so that when one changes focus by X amount, the other changes by X as well. What this means is that if one eye healed differently than the other post-surgically, and one eye was left hyperopic while the other was not, the hyperopic eye will refocus to create a clear image for that eye and will basically drag the other eye along with it, creating blur in the contralateral eye. Touch-up surgeries are not uncommon and usually the amount of prescription being altered is so small that it's fairly simple to correct without fear of large backsliding. Hope that answers your question.
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Jun 29, 2011 14:28
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Anisocoria Feldman posted:Touch-up surgeries are not uncommon and usually the amount of prescription being altered is so small that it's fairly simple to correct without fear of large backsliding. Hope that answers your question. That's a great explanation. Thanks!
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Jun 29, 2011 18:24
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To any of you that have had it done do you ever occasionally miss your glasses? I am still in the period where I can not get it done because of my shifting script but it led me to thinking about how I would feel of my old rituals dieing. The two year replacement, picking frames, waking up every morning and trying to remember where I put my glasses when I was woken up in the middle of the night, that sort of thing. Nobody misses those things? I guess I sort of wonder because I have worn glasses for pretty much as long as I could form a thought in my tiny brain and it almost feels like I would be giving a part of who I am away.
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Jun 30, 2011 04:16
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insidius posted:To any of you that have had it done do you ever occasionally miss your glasses? I am still in the period where I can not get it done because of my shifting script but it led me to thinking about how I would feel of my old rituals dieing. Hell no.
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Jun 30, 2011 04:22
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Last week makes it 3 years since I got LASIK. Before my surgery, I had 20/240 vision and heavy astigmatism (somewhere around -11 in both eyes). I wore contacts for 8 years before my surgery, but as I'm allergic to a lot of eye care stuff, it was hell for me. When I went in for my pre-screening, they determined I wasn't eligible for LASIK, and would have to get PRK (instead of a flap and hitting the inside of the eye, they just shave the outside). It was determined that if I had LASIK, they'd have to blast away too much and I'd be left with too little cornea. However, after the initial pre-screening, they reviewed the results and determined I was just inside the threshold for LASIK. I went in and had it done about a week later. I'm a nervous person by nature, and the thought of having my eyes carved up didn't help, but the surgery wasn't nearly as bad as my mind conjured up. It's very uncomfortable, but no pain at all. A lot of pressure is all. Once I was done, I got driven home and had to use a bunch of drops each day. At the end of the first day, I couldn't see for poo poo. The next morning, I woke up and could read the house numbers on buildings across the street. Within a week I'd fully stabilized, and my doc read my vision at 20/15 - better than perfect. I went from over legally blind to better than flawless vision. Fast forward, and my eye doctor notices some bubbles during my 9 month routine checkup. He has no idea what they are. I go back to the surgery place, but the main doc is out, and the follow up doc is also clueless. I wait a few more weeks, freaking out, but finally get to see the main doctor. It turns out that my flap had slid just a tiny bit and some dust got inside, which then got a coating on it similar to a pearl in a clam. They don't affect my vision, haven't gotten worse, and all is well in general. It's 3 years on now, and I just had my checkup. My vision has fallen a bit, to about 20/30ish. I go back in 6 months, and my eye doc might recommend me for corrective surgery if it doesn't hold. 20/30 is still pretty good, though I have problems reading words at distance, it doesn't affect me at all day to day. Side effects? First 6 months I had hell with halos. If I looked at any light source, even during daylight, I'd get massive halos. This eventually faded to where it's no problem now. Dry eyes only a bit, but I routinely use drops every day as I use a computer for my job, and my doc thinks I don't blink enough. I don't NEED them, but I err on the side of caution concerning my eyes. I wore goggles for about 5 weeks after the surgery while I slept (was told 3, but as I said, they're my drat eyes and I'm not going to skimp). I was told not to get my eyes wet during the first week or so, and stay away from particulates for a few weeks (changing the cat litter, mowing the lawn, etc). I used to rub my eyes a lot, but I haven't done it once in 3 years for fear of dislodging the flap. I doubt I actually could, but why tempt fate? Would I do it again? In a heartbeat. If you've never had 20/240 or worse vision, you don't get how cumbersome glasses or contacts can be. How bad it is waking up in the middle of the night and not being able to navigate your house. How horrible it is to tear a contact or break your glasses and be partially blind until replacements come. Not being able to see in the shower, not being able to swim in pools - it's all annoying. 20 minutes of being uncomfortable was well worth my vision now. Even if I have to get follow up surgery, it's still one of the few really good decisions I've made.
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Jun 30, 2011 19:37
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insidius posted:To any of you that have had it done do you ever occasionally miss your glasses? I am still in the period where I can not get it done because of my shifting script but it led me to thinking about how I would feel of my old rituals dieing. Coincidentally I'm at the 3 year mark. Some might call my surgery cosmetic, since my vision wasn't seriously impaired. I could see well without glasses, and with glasses/contacts my vision was perfect. Without glasses, though, my left eye would turn in and make me look like a special ed case. I didn't know until after I got the surgery how much my quality of life would improve. It's the little things that all add up: finding somewhere to put the damned things when swimming Seeing the world through a perpetual cloud of haze (I never kept my glasses clean) Getting acne on my nose Constantly pushing them up and developing a facial tick consisting of pushing my glasses up with my facial muscles Taking them off and then putting them back on when putting on a motorcycle helmet Falling asleep with them on and waking up on top of broken glasses Being late because I misplaced them Holding on to them frantically so they don't fly off on roller coasters Winter and walking into heated rooms, enough said Don't get me started on contacts. They permanently changed the dryness and general feeling of my eyes more than LASIK ever did. My corneas were thick enough that I can just get it done again at 40-50 when my vision inevitably fails like all old people, and I fully intend to. Whoever says that surgeons never go under the knife is wrong. The clinic I went to didn't have an employee there who wore any kind of corrective lens.
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Jul 1, 2011 08:19
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Getting LASIK Intralase Wavefront done next month and am pretty excited. I was initially going to go for the mechanical option of cutting the flap but it was freaking me out a bit so I opted to pay a little more for the best treatment. I'm actually not nervous at all but this may change closer to the day. 
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Jul 1, 2011 09:24
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The Gay Bean posted:My corneas were thick enough that I can just get it done again at 40-50 when my vision inevitably fails like all old people, and I fully intend to. Presbyopia doesn't work like that, unless you're thinking monovision.
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Jul 1, 2011 18:21
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The Gay Bean posted:Whoever says that surgeons never go under the knife is wrong. The clinic I went to didn't have an employee there who wore any kind of corrective lens. SimonNotGarfunkel posted:Getting LASIK Intralase Wavefront done next month and am pretty excited. I was initially going to go for the mechanical option of cutting the flap but it was freaking me out a bit so I opted to pay a little more for the best treatment.
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Jul 3, 2011 11:22
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Anyone considering LASIK...Harden the gently caress up and get PRK!
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Jul 4, 2011 23:27
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How do most clinics handle billing? I don't have an extra 2 - 5k laying around, so I'd like to finance it. Does this happen? Are the interest rates exorbitant?
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Jul 5, 2011 03:39
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I got iLASIK (the femtosec laser) done in South Korea. It was about $2,200. Total healing time was about one week, though I had to wear protective covers over my eyes while sleeping for at least two weeks after the surgery. My vision is 20/20. I highly recommend shelling out a bit extra for iLASIK in the States because the healing time is shorter and there's less pain after the surgery.
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Jul 5, 2011 06:23
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ryan_woody posted:How do most clinics handle billing? I don't have an extra 2 - 5k laying around, so I'd like to finance it. Does this happen? Are the interest rates exorbitant? The one I'm going to required you pay for the surgery the day of. They also offered a pamphlet on a financing offer through a third party called CareCredit. It's basically a credit card that you use to finance medical procedures. If you pay the procedure amount back before a certain amount of time (18 months, 24 months if it's over $3000) there is no interest. Take it past that and you get raped at like 27% interest retroactive or some poo poo. They also have a flate rate 15% interest rate option as well. I plan on taking the no-interest route myself. Edit: Rather than double post I'll edit this in here. I have my PRK surgery in about 4 hours, I'll come back with a trip report when I'm actually able to see and type poo poo. I will note that the gabapentin that was prescribed to me (actually Lyrica was prescribed but Neurontin was an allowed substitution and that's just name brand gabapentin) does give me a slight high. Being a little stoned at work is nice. MonkeyBot fucked around with this message at 16:16 on Jul 15, 2011 |
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Jul 5, 2011 23:04
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Is anyone knowledgeable about US military eye surgery? I was told by my recruiter that there's a chance I could get "free LASIK". I'm concerned about the flap and after reading the thread, would prefer PRK or LASEK. Is it possible he should have said "free vision correction surgery including but not limited to LASIK"? Or is LASIK the only option for US military members?
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Jul 17, 2011 01:57
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Harmburger posted:Is anyone knowledgeable about US military eye surgery? I was told by my recruiter that there's a chance I could get "free LASIK". I'm concerned about the flap and after reading the thread, would prefer PRK or LASEK. Is it possible he should have said "free vision correction surgery including but not limited to LASIK"? Or is LASIK the only option for US military members? I don't know if it has changed, but PRK was the ONLY option for military members a couple years ago. I'm pretty sure you'll be able to get PRK.
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Jul 17, 2011 02:07
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^^^ That's right. LASIK has only been an option for ~4 years.Harmburger posted:Is anyone knowledgeable about US military eye surgery? I was told by my recruiter that there's a chance I could get "free LASIK". I'm concerned about the flap and after reading the thread, would prefer PRK or LASEK. Is it possible he should have said "free vision correction surgery including but not limited to LASIK"? Or is LASIK the only option for US military members?
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Jul 17, 2011 02:37
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swenblack posted:^^^ That's right. LASIK has only been an option for ~4 years. Thanks swenblack and JGTheSpy. I'm probably going to do the opposite of flying(submarine duty). It's good to know that I'll be able to get eye surgery and take a punch to the face. e: VVV I've read about the priority factor, I'm hoping that being exceptionally qualified and in the Navy's top program will get me a higher priority, but we shall see. HarmB fucked around with this message at 23:44 on Jul 17, 2011 |
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Jul 17, 2011 06:44
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Harmburger posted:Thanks swenblack and JGTheSpy. I'm probably going to do the opposite of flying(submarine duty). It's good to know that I'll be able to get eye surgery and take a punch to the face. Keep in mind this will be somewhat dependant on your chain of command to actually get it done. Mine screwed me and have not pushed anything up for me, hence why I am considering paying out pocket for it.
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Jul 17, 2011 16:14
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Harmburger posted:e: VVV I've read about the priority factor, I'm hoping that being exceptionally qualified and in the Navy's top program will get me a higher priority, but we shall see. 1. Pilots 2. People getting deployed in a few months 3. Everyone else
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Jul 18, 2011 03:10
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ryan_woody posted:Keep in mind this will be somewhat dependant on your chain of command to actually get it done. Mine screwed me and have not pushed anything up for me, hence why I am considering paying out pocket for it.
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Jul 18, 2011 03:16
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swenblack posted:When I had mine done, I did all the paperwork and just pounded on my commander's door and had him sign it. The only reason I've ever heard of commanders caring whatsoever is if you've got a deployment coming in the next few months. He's probably got to approve it anyways even if you get it done through a civilian. Where did you find your paperwork? I have no idea where to look (army), and it would be great to find it and try that avenue again with even less effort on command's part. It's worth trying to save a few grand, I guess.
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Jul 21, 2011 08:31
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Kinda pissed right now. Was booked in to have LASIK today but the surgeon said I wasn't suitable for it as I've recently had problems with Blepharitis (http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3418046). I told them about this in the consultation weeks ago but for some reason it wasn't added to my notes which is a bit worrying. I guess I need to go do some more research on LASEK then as he recommended this because of the smaller chance of infection for someone with my condition.
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Jul 21, 2011 17:51
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SimonNotGarfunkel posted:Kinda pissed right now. If it was me I'd wait a while and then go to another company as they clearly didn't listen/notice what was up with your eyes in the first place. You should look into Lasik with intralase as that has the fastest recovery time.
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Jul 21, 2011 18:39
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Yeah it was with Intralase. And Wavefront. All the bells and whistles basically, but it's still LASIK and the doc basically shot me down as soon as I mentioned the Blepharitis thing. Like you say though, it's a good thing he did. Doing a bit more research on the internet it sounds like I got a lucky break.
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Jul 21, 2011 19:21
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SimonNotGarfunkel posted:Yeah it was with Intralase. And Wavefront. All the bells and whistles basically, but it's still LASIK and the doc basically shot me down as soon as I mentioned the Blepharitis thing. The fact that he didn't go through with the surgery tells me that you went to a reputable center that actually cares about your well-being. Fortunately, the blepharitis can be controlled, so the surgery isn't completely off the table. See Monkeybot's posts here about the possible regimen for ridding yourself of eyelid yuckies.
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Jul 21, 2011 21:58
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ryan_woody posted:Where did you find your paperwork? I have no idea where to look (army), and it would be great to find it and try that avenue again with even less effort on command's part. It's worth trying to save a few grand, I guess.
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Jul 22, 2011 21:54
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Got wavefront surgery today and am kicking myself for not getting it done sooner. The minute I got up from the table I could read the clock on the opposite wall. After having a nap I panicked because I thought I had slept with my contacts in, because that is exactly what it felt like. And I could totally see. They guarantee me 20/20, but I may have halos etc at night due to having massive pupils- which doesn't bother me much because I have always had those at night with my glasses anyways. The surgeon was so fantastic- he walked me through the whole procedure before it happened, and pre-warned me about the horrible smell the laser makes. I'm so excited to go buy sunglasses. I've never had a nice pair my entire life, being limited to what would fit over my glasses.
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Jul 23, 2011 02:27
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MonkeyBot posted:The one I'm going to required you pay for the surgery the day of. They also offered a pamphlet on a financing offer through a third party called CareCredit. It's basically a credit card that you use to finance medical procedures. If you pay the procedure amount back before a certain amount of time (18 months, 24 months if it's over $3000) there is no interest. Take it past that and you get raped at like 27% interest retroactive or some poo poo. They also have a flate rate 15% interest rate option as well. I plan on taking the no-interest route myself. Any updates for us? I have THE BLEPH too and am leaning towards LASEK or PRK so would like to hear your story. Hope it all went well.
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Jul 26, 2011 21:09
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SimonNotGarfunkel posted:Any updates for us? I have THE BLEPH too and am leaning towards LASEK or PRK so would like to hear your story. Warning: Wall of text but hopefully broken up so you only need to read the damned paragraphs you want. I was just coming to check this thread today. I've technically been back at work (programmer, lots of screen time) since last Thursday but it's been busy. I also don't like staring at a screen at home much since it is still pretty tiring on my eyes. I've upped my fonts to 120dpi to help a bit but I sometimes still have to get real close to the screen. The surgery itself: pretty straightforward and the doctor said everything went well. I also found out someone else in my office used the same doctor a few years ago and they had satisfactory results. Before I even got to the surgery consult they had to re-do my Wavefront stuff because they got new software for the machine. They were doing this for every patient so were running about 45 minutes behind as a result. After that they had me do a consultation with a nurse about my drop regimens and other post-op care as well as offering a valium and a 400mg ibuprofen before the surgery. I took both because why the gently caress not? Then they take you into the laser room, lay you down on a couch and put some drops in your eyes and have you close them. I think those were the anesthetic drops. The doctor comes in, props open my right eye with some sort of torture device (I kid, it's only slightly uncomfortable if still totally weird) and has me stare at a flashing orange light. During the procedure that was my whole job, stare at the light. It was a weird experience but not painful. A bunch of drops, the doctor scraping at my eye (no pain but pressure, weird) watching him pick up my epithelium and hand it off then the laser which I heard but neither saw nor smelled as some say they do. Takes maybe 30 seconds absolute tops including putting in the contact bandage which must be retardedly easy on another person's propped open eye. After that it's a repeat on the left eye. Immediately after surgery they tape these clear plastic shields over my eyes and I had to keep them on through the next morning. They are to keep you from rubbing your eyes and look monumentally retarded. You also get a little carry bag with 6 sample size eyedrop bottles of varying types, more tape to tape down the shields at night and a cheapo pair of sunglasses to wear over the shields. Oh and a 10 tablet Vicodin prescription. Medications I got were an opthalmic NSAID that I had to use for the first 4 days postop, 4 drops day of surgery, 3 drops next day then 2 and finally 1. I also got Zymaxid, an opthalmic antibiotic to be taken 4 times a day until the bottle ran out, and Fluorometholone, an opthalmic steroid drop I need to take 4 times a day the first 3 weeks, 3 drops the next 3 weeks and so on. I am also to take 1000mg vitamin C for 6 months following the surgery and use an over-the-counter opthalmic ointment called Muro 128 once a day for a year following removal of the eye contact bandages. I am also supposed to keep up with my doxycycline and Restasis regimens as well although I didn't continue Restasis until the day after surgery (see the previously referenced blepharitis thread for details). Thankfully I got a generic doxycycline prescription instead of Oracea which is only $203 for 3 months as opposed to $438 a month. I also have to maintain my Azasite usage on the eyelids until I'm done with that. Again I have a year prescription but at $180 a month I'll probably let that one slide. If you're keeping track that means the day after surgery I took 4 different eye drops in the morning and evening, 3 drops at lunch and 2 at bedtime, each separated by 3-5 minutes as well as an eyelid rub in the evening. Also artificial tears which have to be used at least once an hour but which I used much more in practice; they stated repeatedly that you cannot overuse these. In addition there's 3 different pills in the morning (vitamin C, gabapentin and doxycycline) with 10 Vicodin tablets available at my whim. Also I have to wear sunglasses outside during the day at all times for the first 6 months at least. Don't forget your lid hygiene either! Immediately after I could actually see pretty well, could read an exit sign down a long hallway and use my phone, although it was blurry. This was necessary because my girlfriend is a jerk and dropped me off at my surgery so I had to call her to come pick me up. They had a waiting room set up so your friends and loved ones could watch your surgery on a video screen attached to the laser's camera but she was a wuss and wouldn't come watch. After the procedure it was pretty much drop me in the waiting room until my ride showed up, although they did offer me coffee. Upon getting home I laid down and closed my eyes. You're supposed to close your eyes as much as possible for the first couple hours after surgery and sleep if possible since the anesthetic wears off fairly quickly and the first couple hours is supposed to hurt the worst. Thanks to the valium I complied and my girlfriend left me to go see the last Harry Potter movie. For the first couple of days my eyesight was a bit blurry but much improved and I was already happy. I had a postop follow-up Saturday morning and the doctor said my eyes were healing nicely. She was also cute and only lived a few blocks away from me. Stupid girlfriend. Sunday my left eye was a bit blurry all day but that cleared up on Monday. Since that Monday though my right eye has been blurry while my left eye fluctuates between crystal clear and a little blurry. I expected the behavior from the left eye but not the right, it's like looking through frosted glass. Last Wednesday I had the contacts removed even though the left one popped itself out that morning. The doctor that looked at me then didn't seem to detect anything untoward and at that point my right eye had only been blurry a couple days. I'm coming up on a week and a half now and am getting a bit concerned. I may have to call the hospital and get it looked at just in case. I just hope that gets rolled into the surgery cost because oh god money. As of right now my drop and drug regimen are much reduced. I finished the antibiotic drop and the gabapentin so I only need to do the steroid drop 4 times a day and Restasis twice. My morning pills are vitamin C and doxycyline. I still use the Azasite at night, as it's not gone yet, and now have to do the ointment. Holy gently caress is this poo poo annoying. You pull down your lower eyelid and squeeze out a 1/4 inch line then close your eyes for a couple minutes. That couple minutes does gently caress all to dissipate the ointment and it will leave you effectively blind for like 15-20 minutes because it's loving ointment. On your eyeball. I use it RIGHT before bed as a result. This and the Azasite I call my eye make-up. Artificial tears still make my eyes into swampland as well. Now to address the blepharitis directly: I haven't had any problems with dry eyes at all after the procedure. I'm using eye drops like a fiend so maybe that's it but there's been no pain or any other issues related to dry eyes. Neither of the doctors on my two follow-up visits mentioned anything about my eyes being too dry so as far as I know it's well controlled enough now to not be an issue. My next follow-up is I think the 12th of August so I might just tough out the right eye thing until then to see if it improves. I wanted to say something else but loving forgot what it was but I think my wall of text is tall enough anyway so I'll stop here. I'll try and check back in to answer any questions folks may have. MonkeyBot fucked around with this message at 18:08 on Jul 27, 2011 |
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Jul 27, 2011 18:05
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I read the whole drat essay FYI so thanks for the info.  I'm still on the fence though. All the horror stories I hear about Blepharitis and laser eye surgery relate to LASIK and not PKR or LASEK. As I posted previously, my surgeon was quite happy to do LASEK there and then as he classed it as less invasive and so less chance of infection. As of now my bleph isn't "active" and I sure as poo poo don't want to have to go through the same pre and post op lid hygiene you have. It sounds like a massive pain in the arse, not to mention expensive. Did your surgeon or opthamologist say anything about the risks of LASIK with bleph as oppose to LASEK/PKR?
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Jul 27, 2011 18:40
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SimonNotGarfunkel posted:I read the whole drat essay FYI so thanks for the info. Oh I guess I should have mentioned it was PRK I got. My doctor actually recommended PRK instead of LASIK because I also had anterior basement membrane dystrophy and didn't mention the blepharitis other than to put me on my shotgun regimen a month before the surgery. The dystrophy thing basically results in small deposits on the epithelium so when the LASIK flap is folded back it could result in scratches and since it has optical properties that would be a Bad ThingTM. The PA who was getting me ready in the laser room actually said if he was gonna get the surgery he would get PRK over LASIK himself. It's supposed to be more painful (I've had no pain, but some discomfort) and definitely takes longer to heal but in the end I think it might have less complications than LASIK.
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Jul 27, 2011 19:11
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MonkeyBot posted:The PA who was getting me ready in the laser room actually said if he was gonna get the surgery he would get PRK over LASIK himself. It's supposed to be more painful (I've had no pain, but some discomfort) and definitely takes longer to heal but in the end I think it might have less complications than LASIK. As a newly graduated optometrist, I'd have to agree with your PA. The primary advantage of LASIK is basically "good vision quickly." PRK came about first, but many people weren't thrilled with having to take a week off work due to the healing time and intermittent blurry vision. That being said, the visual outcomes of both procedures are comparable, but there is one thing about LASIK that I don't like: THE CORNEAL FLAP. LASIK is just getting old enough that some of the people who underwent the surgery when it first appeared are getting old enough themselves to begin considering cataract surgery. To my knowledge there's not much data yet on how the presence of the flap impacts further surgery during cataract removal, but I can't imagine that corneal integrity post-LASIK is going to take it well, in some people. Of course the main variable is your corneal thickness after LASIK, so essentially YMMV. I don't mean to bash LASIK; it's an excellent procedure and I've seen a lot of people who come out of it seeing better than 20/20. However, as far as preserving the natural state of the cornea, PRK is the better choice as long as you can deal with the discomfort and longer healing time. Unfortunately, many refractive surgery centers now push LASIK over PRK precisely because of the instant impact of LASIK, which of course leads to the WOW factor immediately after surgery in most patients. Another game-changer is surgery involving femtosecond lasers, which have all but eliminated the need to use the blade/microkeratome. Studies have already show that "all laser LASIK" results in less post-op dryness and overall less complications. Nonetheless, I'd still prefer PRK. All that being said, though, I'll stick with my glasses.
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Jul 28, 2011 00:16
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Got Intralase and Lasik on my left eye a week ago at Hoopes Vision in Salt Lake City. My right eye is 20/20 already. Yay half price. I'm terrified of things going in my eyes, even down to simple eye drops. So the procedure started out as someone of an ordeal for my nerves. They gave me the valium only 10 minutes before the procedure so it wouldn't have had time to kick in. After the procedure, it turned out it never did anything for me anyway. The total procedure time was less than 20 seconds. The corneal flap was lasered in 14 seconds, and I sat around in a massage chair waiting for the bubbles to work themselves through my cornea and create the flap. While I was waiting a nice girl brought me warm, fresh-baked cookies. About 10 minutes later they put me under the Lasik machine, 4 seconds of that and I was done. They even gave me a DVD recording of the whole thing. If you want me to rip it and post it, I can do that for anyone interested. Needless to say, a week later I have no problem with eye drops anymore. My eye is still a touch cloudy, but I'm not getting halos at night and everything is amazing. I was told I could go home and watch tv the first day. I was back to work with zero issues the following morning. The only discomfort I've experienced was the "foreign object" feeling. Normally that's if my eye is feeling a little dry, so I just drop some drops in and I'm good. I'm also taking a steroid and antibiotic drop. I am driving day and night just fine and using a computer just fine, all day at work. I don't feel strained or discomfort. permanoob fucked around with this message at 23:42 on Jul 28, 2011 |
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Jul 28, 2011 23:39
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If you don't mind the internet looking at your eyeball, I'd like to see the video.
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Jul 29, 2011 01:23
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