I'm tired of being blind, what can I do?

[Mill]

I can wear my contacts for months at a time with no problem -- even though I shouldn't. I have an eye-exam yearly, and I've been told that my eyes look fine. In fact, my doctors bitch at me because I wear my contacts too long, but I don't have blood vessels growing over my cornea, or any other problems. I've had full exams with dilation and all that jazz -- from two different doctors.

My biggest current problems are playing sports or doing some type of crazy activity. High wind, debris (even being on the Beach during a gentle breeze gets sand in my eyes), also aggravate me. That, and, sometimes I have pretty dry eyes if I am woken up during the night.

I have really big pupils; halos and quick nightblindness already exist for me with contacts. That is why I'm scared of surgery, and because I've always overworn my contacts (I'd imagine I'd need at least a few months of eyeglass wear, and then consistent safe contact wear to overcome my stupid habits).

My irritation at wearing contacts right now is fairly minimal with the exception of sports or wind in my eyes.

Let me add one other caveat... I want to get the surgery done in Colombia if possible. I know that I should probably get it done here in Birmingham (with some of the pioneers of eye surgery and LASIK), but I figure I could wait another 4-5 years for the best tech to filter down to Colombia. Plus, most Colombian doctors are trained in the US, and they typically have pretty great technology. I just don't know if they have Wavefront and all the new stuff or not. I do, however, know that they are very professional, much cheaper (even with the dollar sucking), and I've heard NUMEROUS testimonials from American clients and Colombian friends/family.

Basically, I'm worried that my high diopter -- in combination with large pupils makes my surgery risky, and you add in my less than stellar adhesion to normal contact wear, and I feel I'd be undertaking a MAJOR risk.

People who have had PRK, Lasik, or otherwise please post. Especially you folks with high diopters or massive pupils.

 

[Q]

Have you tried different brands/types of contacts?

 

[ViviTheMage]

do you have eyebrows or eye lashes? haha

 

[Capitalizt]

just go see a local LASIK doctor. Check your yellow pages. They will run all the necessary tests to see if you qualify for the surgery. I had it an absolutely love the results. It's worth every penny.

 

[Modeps]

If you wear contacts, you've got an Ophthalmologist. Ask them who they recommend for LASIK or PRK... don't cheap it up.

 

[summit]

i'd pony up the cash and do it in america... just to be safe... i mean its ur eyes and all

 

[AliasX]

Don't fuck with the eyes.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Truthfully you're just as likely to find doctors with as much or more experience in LASIK/PRK procedures in South/Cenral America (and China as well) as in the US.
Just about all LASIK/PRK equipment goes through testing in those countries first before it receives FDA approval for use in the US market, since many of those countries have far less restrictive regulations regarding the use of such equipment and procedures.

They are our guinea pigs.

 

[JTsyo]

I always considered LASIK but was scared of what would happen if something went wrong. I been told my eye prescription is stable enough to have the surgery. IF it gets FDA approval I would probably be confidant in doing it.

 

[jamesbond007]

What's your prescription? Just curious because I think I may have larger pupils as well, but have never been told so. I also exhibit the halos consistently when it's not too bright outside, but have learned to tolerate it as it doesn't bother me as much as the side-lights and glare that I get from glasses. I wear -7 in each eye (no correction) with contacts and a -7.25 and -8.25 in the other eye with a slight astigmatism correction.

My doctor says that I'm a great candidate for LASIK, but after talking with some friends about the surgical process, I got freaked out about it! Apparently you go completely blind during the procedure for a few moments when the doctors are doing their thing! My uncle had a flap that they cut come undone a few days post-surgery! Talk about a panic attack...

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

LASIK has been FDA approved for some time. Actually, it's not the procedure that requires the approval, but the devices they use to perform the procedure.

I had the Wavefront LASIK done over 3 years ago. Best money I've ever spent on a doctor.

 

[KK]

Had it done a few years ago, best money spent. Went to lasik+ over here in atlanta, did my consultation in gwinnet off of satellite blvd, and the procedure up in alpharetta just a few days after. wife had hers done by lasik+ up around the cumberland mall a month or so after I got mine done. We both can still see 20/20 or better. She had more issues going in than me, with dry eyes and such, she did have her ducts plugged prior to lasik for some reason that I'm failing to remember why now. I decided to get it done because like you, I would wear my contacts for months at a time, basically the only time I had them out is if one happened to slide around and force me to take it out to reposition it. My eye doctor said that my vessels were growing into where they should because the lack of air. So I didn't want to mess my eyes up permanently, so I thought taking the laser to it would be better in the long run. My procedure was around 2400-2500 for both eyes, my wifes procedure was about 800 more.

 

[Leros]

Did I miss something in your post. Why can't you wear glasses if you're going to be in a windy situation or something.

I don't qualify for laser eye surgery either because I have giant pupils (everybody thinks I am high all the time ). My eye doctor told me that come 2020 or so, they'll probably be able to do the surgery on pupils my large. So maybe just wait until the technology improves.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Originally posted by: KK
Had it done a few years ago, best money spent. Went to lasik+ over here in atlanta, did my consultation in gwinnet off of satellite blvd, and the procedure up in alpharetta just a few days after. wife had hers done by lasik+ up around the cumberland mall a month or so after I got mine done. We both can still see 20/20 or better. She had more issues going in than me, with dry eyes and such, she did have her ducts plugged prior to lasik for some reason that I'm failing to remember why now. I decided to get it done because like you, I would wear my contacts for months at a time, basically the only time I had them out is if one happened to slide around and force me to take it out to reposition it. My eye doctor said that my vessels were growing into where they should because the lack of air. So I didn't want to mess my eyes up permanently, so I thought taking the laser to it would be better in the long run. My procedure was around 2400-2500 for both eyes, my wifes procedure was about 800 more.

They generally plug your tear ducts in order to help keep your eyes moistened better. Some people believe that tear ducts are where the moisture in your eyes originates from. They actually drain that mositure away into your nasal cavity though.

 

[CycloWizard]

Neovascularization is only one potential problem from long-term contact wear. The primary one is oxygen deprivation of corneal endothelial cells. These cells replenish the cornea throughout your life and require oxygen diffusion through the cornea to survive. The contact lens is an additional diffusion barrier that inhibits oxygen transport across the cornea. The cells are robust enough that 8 hours or so per day with reduced oxygen levels isn't a problem, but longer-term wear can lead to chronic effects like holes in the cornea, which would suck.

I also hate wearing glasses and contacts, especially when playing sports or being outdoors. However, the number one complication with LASIK/PRK/any corneal treatment is dry eye. If you are already seeing dry eye effects before having the surgery, then this is probably not something you should pursue.

I'll also note that even if you get LASIK or other corrective surgery, you will still need reading glasses by the time you're 40-45. If you're going to do it, the best time is in your mid-20's because your eyes have largely stabilized and you'll get about 20 years of glasses-free living out of it.

 

[imported_Imp]

I've been wanting LASIK for a while (still a few years before eyes "stabilize"), but have been concerned about screw-ups or complications. Right now, I switch between soft contacts for outdoors and glasses for home use. Glasses give me no peripheral and get smudgy while contacts dry my eyes out and are occasionally irritating. However, I will almost be guaranteed vision till I die with contacts/glasses. I go LASIK, there's a 1-2% (ish??) chance I can go blind or have even more messed up eyes. The paper did an article recently about people committing suicide cause their LASIK went wrong; not very encouraging. Hope they perfect the technology more in the next 5 years.

 

[Fritzo]

I was going to get Lasik, but it was $4000 I found these Focus Night & Day contacts that let you wear them (and sleep in them) for 30 days at a time. They're AWESOME! It's like not wearing contacts at all. I saved the $4000.

 

[The_Dude8]

Originally posted by: Fritzo
I was going to get Lasik, but it was $4000 I found these Focus Night & Day contacts that let you wear them (and sleep in them) for 30 days at a time. They're AWESOME! It's like not wearing contacts at all. I saved the $4000.

I was going to get lasik too, but it was $4500 , so for now i am sticking with contact and glasses.

 

[Fritzo]

Originally posted by: The_Dude8

Originally posted by: Fritzo
I was going to get Lasik, but it was $4000 I found these Focus Night & Day contacts that let you wear them (and sleep in them) for 30 days at a time. They're AWESOME! It's like not wearing contacts at all. I saved the $4000.

I was going to get lasik too, but it was $4500 , so for now i am sticking with contact and glasses.

Have you checked into the night and day lenses? They're super air-permiable, so it makes them very comfortable. You can sleep in them, swim, etc, and after 30 days you pop them out and put in a new pair. Amazing lenses.

 

[Epic Fail]

There is a thread over at Health and Fitness bashing Lasik

http://forums.anandtech.com/me...=2128346&enterthread=y


I think it's too paranoid and a bit unfounded.

 

[JTsyo]

Originally posted by: jamesbond007
What's your prescription? Just curious because I think I may have larger pupils as well, but have never been told so. I also exhibit the halos consistently when it's not too bright outside, but have learned to tolerate it as it doesn't bother me as much as the side-lights and glare that I get from glasses. I wear -7 in each eye (no correction) with contacts and a -7.25 and -8.25 in the other eye with a slight astigmatism correction.

My doctor says that I'm a great candidate for LASIK, but after talking with some friends about the surgical process, I got freaked out about it! Apparently you go completely blind during the procedure for a few moments when the doctors are doing their thing! My uncle had a flap that they cut come undone a few days post-surgery! Talk about a panic attack...

From the FDA site:

Large pupils. Make sure this evaluation is done in a dark room. Although anyone may have large pupils, younger patients and patients on certain medications may be particularly prone to having large pupils under dim lighting conditions. This can cause symptoms such as glare, halos, starbursts, and ghost images (double vision) after surgery. In some patients these symptoms may be debilitating. For example, a patient may no longer be able to drive a car at night or in certain weather conditions, such as fog.

http://www.fda.gov/cdrh/lasik/when.htm