Laser eye surgery - who here would have it done?

[Fangorn]

This procedure just gets cheaper and cheaper. More and more people are getting it to be rid of their glasses. Yet it does have a recognized complication rate. Halos at night and blurred vision are terrible things to have for the rest of your life. There's nothing that an ophthalmologist can do to correct this (yet, I suppose).

Talking to some eye surgeons I know say that they would never get the procedure done because the risk is too great. This really bugs me: what kind of doc would do a surgery that they themselves wouldn't undergo? I wonder what that MEANS about laser eye surgery???!

Personally, I depend on my vision too much for work (and play!) to risk it. My glasses will do me just fine for now. Any thoughts out there? Anyone here had it done?

 

[tkim]

i'm really thinking about it. i heard that sometimes it can go bad..any thoughts?? i would love to get rid of my glasses and contacts!

 

[GoldenTiger]

<< Halos at night and blurred vision are terrible things to have for the rest of your life. There's nothing that an ophthalmologist can do to correct this (yet, I suppose). >>



I have those even with my glasses at night, even during the day . Beams of light extend across my entire view at night, it stinks . Makes it harder to drive by far since it blocks a lot of my vision . I don't want to risk it becoming even worse from laser eye surgery, personally...

 

[jsbush]

My moms done it two both eyes about ten times and she still needs to ware glasses at night. It cost her about $3000 (canadain) for each eye, she says it was worth it.

She used to be like -18 on one eye and like -20 on the other, now she's about -2 on one and -3 on the other. She had really bad vision before. My aunt also did it, but hers what differnt not to sure but they implanted something in her eye.

 

[Fangorn]

The shape of your corneas (the focusing mechanism of the eye) does not stay constant over your lifetime. It is fairly natural for people to become more farsighted as they age (meaning the closer things get blurrier). If the laser surgery corrects your vision to near normal when you're young and nearsighted, that means you'll have good vision (hopefully) for a span of years, but then have a significant chance of becoming farsighted as you age.

I don't think I'll ever get the surgery. Just not worth it. Besides, there are some cool glasses out there!

 

[Elledan]

It's still a risky operation and I would only recommend it to people who have extremely bad vision.

In the future, artificial vision will most likely take the place of this kind of surgery, since it's much more reliable, less chance on any damage etc.

 

[kranky]

Some archived threads on Lasik:
http://forums.anandtech.com/arcmessageview.cfm?catid=38&amp;threadid=262288
http://forums.anandtech.com/arcmessageview.cfm?catid=38&amp;threadid=150422

 

[Modeps]

i want it, my vision is so horrible, i honeslty cant stand it, ive been wearing glasses since i was about 7 and i cant get fully used to them, yeah i dont notice them during the day, but when you HAVE to put on your glasses just to take a leak in the middle of the night, its just crazy.

 

[ToBeMe]

Hmm, didn't seem to bad to me......45 min and I could see perfectly! No complications, no nothing! That was over 2 years ago and still my eyesight is near perfect! Heck, I take a risk everytime I get into a car, or on a plane.......I personally know of about a dozen other people whom have had it done and none of us have had any complications whatsoever! Just make sure you check out the Doctor thoughorly first and me personally, I wouldn't have it done by a doctor whom wouldn't do it himself..........mine already had!

 

[gogeeta13]

i think the technique is still immature. i would rather wait.

 

[ratkil]

Sight is the one sense I fear losing more then any of the other ones, I don't think I would ever chance it, unless maybe I was at the point where I was basically blind without glasses.

Hmmm, that brings up a poll idea

 

[Dedpuhl]

My dad had it done. He needs reading glasses, but his vision has been close to 20/20 for several years.

 

[desy]

Had it done and it was dirt cheap 1200 Canadian for both eyes.
The biggest deal is to go in and get your assement, of the people that have had it done 96% say they wouldn't hesitate to do it again.
Put me in that category. The chance of a defect is very low and chance of total defect over partial is magnified 10X.
Yes there are horror stories but more of you are likely to die in a car crash than have one of those horror stories.
So if you are young and have stable eyes and the kind of eyes that make you a good candidate
Don't Worry
I figure I'll get about 15 yrs before I have to start to wear reading glasses but considering I had eyglasses since grade two I only wihs the technolgy was around when I was 21

 

[Raspewtin]

i got it and it's the best surgery i ever had. The halos are not a big deal (they get better over time), and the ability to see clearly from the minute you wake up is unbelievable. To see in the shower, or the minute you open your eyes, clearly (no dirty vision b/c of dirty glasses), is the most incredible thing. It's so freeing. my vision is 20/15 now

 

[BigSmooth]

I am definitely considering it, although I don't know if I would be a &quot;good&quot; candidate. My vision is really awful (+ I have astigmatism) so I can only wear hard contacts, which are expensive. It does seem like the longer I wait, the safer and cheaper it will get, though.

 

[AndrewR]

Immature? The basic techniques have been around since the '80s since the Russians were using this before we were.

If I could afford it, I would definitely have it done. I would probably want my cousin in Ohio to do it since he's brilliant and happens to be an ophthamologist.

 

[ToBeMe]

I may be wrong......they may have made advancements but when I had mine done I didn't think people whom had an astigmatism were even eligable for this surgery......

 

[Elledan]

<< It does seem like the longer I wait, the safer and cheaper it will get, though. >>

This counts for most kinds of surgeries, actually

 

[Isla]

My sister had it, and one eye turned out fine while the other we call &quot;Algernon&quot;... it was 20/20 but then sort of reverted back to being somewhat nearsighted again. Still, she is relatively happy with it.

Me, I have had enough eye surgery to last a lifetime (for my strabismus) so I am not keen to have more. I'm pretty happy with my glasses and my contacts, so that's that.

 

[Doggiedog]

I hear one of the most misleading thing about these surgeries are the success rates. They say the success rate of the surgeries done is very high, probably in the 90's. But the misleading part is they catergorize failed surgeries as post-surgery complications in order to keep the success rate high. If you add in post-surgery complications, then the rate is much much lower. I know a bunch of people who have bad halos at night and can't drive at all. The doctors all called their surgeries successes but called the halos complications. Total BS if you ask me.

 

[kami]

The only problem I see is that no one knows what happens in say, 10 years after the surgery. It's a very, very experimental treatment.

 

[cjchaps]

I just had the surgery done about a month ago, and I believe it was one of the best purchases I have ever made in my life. Mine was $1500 US for both eyes. I would associate the halos at night effect with wearing contacts for too long. My night vision is as good as it was before, and even after a month the halo effect is not noticable. BTW, my surgeon had the procedure done. I have about 20/20 vision right now, and the freedom of not having contacts or glasses is amazing. If you look at the failure rate, it is less than 1%, and if you go to a good, reputable doctor, I am sure it will be even lower than that. It's great to be able to swim and wear googles, AND being able to see clearly at the same time!

 

[JasonG]

The complications seem pretty scary to me. As long as I can see 20/20 with my glasses or contacts, I wouldn't have it done.

Anyway, my eye doctor asked me about it and then he measured my pupils and said they were way too big for it. I guess the complications rate increases greatly the larger the pupil is.

Make sure you check into it very thoroughly before doing it! It's not worth having to live totally disabled for the rest of your life. It does happen to some people.

Maybe in the future the risks will decrease. Obviously it's a highly appealing idea to get rid of your glasses but don't let that be your only reason.

Anyway, my $0.02.

Jason

 

[Azraele]

I've been thinking about it, but I'm not sure if it's worth the risk. Also, I can't afford it at this time so the point is moot really. But it would be nice to be able to see the tv or clock without having contacts/glasses in/on.

 

[cjchaps]

I was told during my pre-exam that my pupils were very large, and then told that would increase my complication factor. Those complications being that my night vision might be bad, and I would require glasses to drive at night. When I was having the procedure done, my doctor told me that he was compensating for my larger pupils. Two days later I was driving at night just fine, with only a minor &quot;halo&quot; effect from the street lights and oncoming cars.