do we have a thread about LASIK yet?

[rnln]

If you are mid age, near sighted vision all your life and hate wearing glasses. Remember, mid age is starting on reading glasses too. Would you do lasik? What's the advantage and disadvantage? What/how is the current technology out there now? What is the percentages of risk?
Years ago, if I remember right, the risk of side affect was around 32%. Pretty high to me.
Thanks.

[pwd72s]

Lasic is extrememly popular among the serious pool playing set. Guess I'm not serious enough yet, since I have only 2 eyes.

I know one player who went with a lens replacement operation...$10,000. But she raves about the results.

Here's a link to the clinic she used. Dr. Packer.
Oregon Eye Specialists Drs. Fine, Hoffman, Packer & Sims, LLC

One thing I have heard is to NOT bargain hunt. Go with the best...

[GH85Carrera]

I asked a friend of mine that is a eye surgeon. He pointed at his glasses and smiled.

He said that depth perception is much reduced and many people have starburst type of effects with night driving after surgery. Many people love the improvement after surgery.

I figure I will wait until he has his eyes done before I do mine.

[pwd72s]

I think the depth perception thing is why the lady I know went with the lens replacement. Seeing clearly at various distances is needed in pool. She was extrememly near sighted before the operation. Now she's one of the better woman players around here. "My game picked up 4 balls instantly." That's a LOT in pool...gaining 4 balls per rack.

All that said, I still wear glasses...the idea of somebody cutting on my eyes makes me nervous.

[Scott R]

10 years post Lasik, perfect vision still no side effects middle aged. Some of the best money I've ever spent. I can't even remember what it was like wearing glasses anymore. Things like diving and skiing are so much better without glasses or contacts.

I was a 25 year contact lenses wearer, they were to the point of being uncomfortable all of the time dude to calcium ridges on my eyes from the lenses. It was either try another, and another, and another type of contact lens year after year. Or a 1/2 hour procedure to throw all of that away.

[MauleM5-235]

Had Lasik in 1997. I had been wearing glasses for 25+ years at the time of the operation. It is an easy operation. Be aware that even if you have Lasik, over time your eyes will nonetheless change and you may eventually need glasses/contacts later anyway.
Not having to wear glasses or contacts is wonderful. I no longer remember what it was like to have to fuss w/ them all the time.

Be cautious as to who you have do the surgery. My wife is a nurse who assists in Lasik surgeries. Based on her experience I was very careful who I had do the surgery. I have been told a good rule of thumb is that the more advertising the doctor does, the more cautious you should be (because the doctor has to do enough surgeries to pay for that overhead and so may be more willing to do a surgery that is more risky than would otherwise be done).

[jhynesrockmtn]

I had it in 1998 or so. Not sure I would go through it again. Painless, major improvement right away but my vision is starting to go due to normal middle age changes and now need reading and computer glasses all of the time. My distance vision is still good enough but more like 20/50 now vs. the 20/20 I had for a few years after the surgery. I'm 48 now. I bought about 7 years of no glasses but it cost several thousand.

[scottmandue]

AFAIK it depends a lot on the problem with your eyes.

Being nearsighted I'm a bit of an odd duck (oh shut-up!) and have been told it won't work for me.

My friend did a ton of research and had it done by the best doctor in Lost Angeles... but still has to wear reading glasses.

I would do it in a heartbeat if they could make my eyesight perfect.

[Dan J]

Had it done in 01 at 44 had 20/400 vision. I'd do it again in a minute. I need reading glasses but so do all my 53 yo friends. IMHO really worth it. Do your homework on the surgeon

[jyl]

What are the side effects?

No cure for inability to near focus, right? Still need reading glasses?

What are the eyes that respond best? And worst? (I'm very nearsighted, astigmatic, and am wearing progressive lenses).

[McLovin]

I was one of the first, would have been around 1994 or so.

It's been great for me for 17+ years. I have none of the side effects mentioned above. I still don't use reading glasses. Just clear vision, both near and far.

[Evans, Marv]

I've worn reading glasses for 26 years and hate them like the rest of you, but I understand lasik can't correct that except in a permanent way. Some of my friends have had it done to where they can see far away with one eye and up close with the other. So they basically only see distance with one eye and read with one eye. Doesn't particularly appeal to me. However I have an astigmatism in one eye and probably better than 20/20 in the other, and if they can correct the astigmatism, I'm thinking of looking into it. It's a bother to cover up one eye and see distances clearly and have fuzzy vision with the other. I know the reading glasses thing is here forever.

[nota]

I had lenz inplants 10 years ago because of cataracts
too much tropical sun on the job and boats
was 20-2000 extreme nearsighted
went to 20-40 after not perfect but good with out correction for life

minor one day eye pain
some night staring from head lights driving but not a big deal
lost extra close focus
but can read and see distance fine now
so I never use the reading or other glasses

[sammyg2]

I personally know 4 people who've had it done. All of them are extremely happy with the results with no side effects.

[Ronbo]

I had mine done about 12 years ago. I don't remember my numbers, but I couldn't function without my glasses, and I had astigmatism in both eyes. LASIK corrected the astigmatism and both eyes tested 20/20. I did experience starbursts at night at first, but that eventually went away as my eyes healed. I also had a bad problem with dry eyes after surgery. My doctor recommended punctual plugs, so I got those and my dry eyes were cured immediately. I do need reading glasses, but I was told I would have to as I age and the eye loses it's ability to focus on close objects.

As someone who had to wear glasses always from childhood to my early 40's, I can't say enough how much getting LASIK has changed my life.

[Racerbvd]

I had it done a few years back ( Atlantic Eye Institute of Jacksonville: Ophthalmology, LASIK, Optometry, Cataracts ), started wearing glasses when I was 5, (I'm 46 now)also went back & forth with contacts. All I can say is WOW!!!! I had the PRK and love it, I was using reading glasses with contacts, but haven't needed them since and I'm still amazed when I go someplace, that I had gone to for years and notice stuff I never noticed before.. The only negative I had was I had to adjust my pool game to actually being able to see
My mother had lasik at age 60, she is 74 now and still very happy..

[biosurfer1]

I had it done in Feb. of this year. Best $1600 I've spent. I get dry eye once in a while after a long day in front of the computer...dont remember that happening before but completely worth it to me.

20/400 (L) and 20/750(R) before and 20/15 in both 3 months after and still as good if not better now.

If you do have it done, ask the nurse to show you your "before" on the eye charts if you really want to be amazed. I couldn't believe how big the letters were that I struggled with before. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

[artplumber]

Variable results in our own family. Wife went to 20/15 right away and stayed there. I am officially 20/20, but that is only after lubricant. Really live around 20/40. When I need to see something I'm blinking 20 times in 2 secs. Is very nice to see underwater and the alarm clock w/o putting on glasses or getting special goggles.

Loss of near focus with age/needing reading glasses is a lens problem, whereas distance acuity is a corneal curvature problem FWIW.

[rnln]

anyone done both, near sighted and reading problem, or if the technoogy is there yet?

[LeRoux Strydom]

I had it done in 1997, after wearing glasses for 20+ years for being long-sighted and astigmatic.

I had to have the left eye done a second time shortly afterwards, as the correction was enough. The slight scarring from the second go resulted in slight starring during night driving in the left eye.

I was glasses-free for 13 years, but now that I'm 50+ I have reading glasses again, and for computer work I wear mild corrective contacts (+0.75 left and +1.00 right), but for normal outdoors activities, I good to go without any correction.

I would do it again if I had to, surely the techniques and equipment have improved tremendously over the past 20 years since its invention.

Elegibility for Lasik depends on the shape & thinckness of the cornea, the inner-eye pressure and few other factors.