Do you have LASIK?

[craitie]

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I've heard that people can have eye irritation to the dry air in the OR. I'm considering getting LASIK before starting residency and am curious if anyone who has LASIK has any problems spending considerable time in the OR? Any thoughts on LASIK before residency at all? Any recommended surgeons in Michigan?

 

[sevoflurane]

One of the best miracles of modern science.

I was -5.5 and -6. Blind as a bat.

Now I'm 20/20. No more glasses or contacts hassles.

I get small halos around lights at night when I drive. Not a big deal.

I also had it done almost 20 yrs. ago.

For the people who like to dive in the turquoise stuff.... I've never had a problem... although I've only tested 100ft a handful of times (usually @ 30-60)

 

[sevoflurane]

Oh... and my wife had it done 4 yrs ago. Also 20/20.

Brilliant!

 

[doctor712]

One of the best miracles of modern science.

I was -5.5 and -6. Blind as a bat.

Now I'm 20/20. No more glasses or contacts hassles.

I get small halos around lights at night when I drive. Not a big deal.

I also had it done almost 20 yrs. ago.

For the people who like to dive in the turquoise stuff.... I've never had a problem... although I've only tested 100ft a handful of times (usually @ 30-60)

Ditto. Really amazing procedure, cured in, what, 10 seconds per eye? The prep took longer than the actual laser. Was just about Sevo's prescription, awful vision. Now? 😎
Better than 20/20 I'm told. No halos. No nuttin'.

I was never bothered by OR observing, short or long cases/days.

Cost a pretty penny. Sister had it too. She had same experience. And we had same Doc...

I had mine in 2003. Lasik, with a blade. I imagine Sevo was RK?

D712

 

[Antigunner]

I had PRK on both eyes in 2009 - both eyes now 20/15, no issues with halos or irritation.

I went with the PRK for two reasons, first of which is that I'm active enough that I didn't want to have to worry about potentially dislodging a flap. The other reason is that I had a cornea fellow do mine and he was only offering PRK at the time - half price, though 👍 (and of course closely supervised)

 

[pgg]

I had LASIK on one eye just about 18 months ago, with perfect results. Had some halo / double vision in that eye at night looking at bright lights for a few days, totally resolved within a week.

Some dryness for 1-2 months, which did fine with daily eye drops. Occasionally still get some dryness in that eye, especially if I'm tired. Never noticed the OR making it worse.


LASIK has taken the #1 position on my "best money ever spent" list, displacing the previous champion, an automatic self-cleaning cat litter box.

 

[sevoflurane]

I had PRK on both eyes in 2009 - both eyes now 20/15, no issues with halos or irritation.

I went with the PRK for two reasons, first of which is that I'm active enough that I didn't want to have to worry about potentially dislodging a flap. The other reason is that I had a cornea fellow do mine and he was only offering PRK at the time - half price, though 👍 (and of course closely supervised)

This is one procedure I woulnd't skimp out on... Find a good surgeon. I'm sure you had a good one... but it's your eyes. The extra bucks are def. worth it.

I don't know what you have pgg, but I love my Litter Robot.

We have two of them... and def. a good investment. 👍

 

[aneftp]

3 of my siblings have had LASIK. My other brother had prk.

Unfortunately I am not a good candidate for LASIK. I am super worried about dry eyes and potentially being on restasis for the rest of my life.

Plus my buddy who's out in Cali (he trained at Miami which has world renowned eye program) told me not to do it. He suggested PRK if I wanted to. He says eventually most who do LASIK will become far sighted so if u get LASIK get it early so you enjoy it longer.

To my knowledge. I do not not a single eye doc who's had LASIK. That's a tell tell sign. My ophtomlogist buddy knows only 3 of his eye docs who have had LASIK. I read somewhere along the line less than 10% of eye docs have had LASIK.

Always practice what you preach. If these guys aren't getting LASIK. The question is why? It's cause they all know there are more risks involved with LASIK than the more painful PRK.

 

[RT2MD]

This is one procedure I woulnd't skimp out on... Find a good surgeon. I'm sure you had a good one... but it's your eyes. The extra bucks are def. worth it.

I don't know what you have pgg, but I love my Litter Robot.

We have two of them... and def. a good investment. 👍

Alright, now THESE are some topics I can get behind on this board!

LASIK - Don't have it, want it bad. My prescription is about the same as listed above... plus really bad astigmatisms. I don't like wearing glasses, and my eyes freak out with the "new" contact material for some reason. That means I'm stuck wearing old contacts that don't allow a lot of O2 in.

Automated litter box - That. looks. awesome. I'd seen one a while back that basically ground it up and dumped it into the toilet... made me think I'd have to teach my cat to flush! 😎 Obviously you have to still empty this by hand, but I like that better than having ground up cat turds sitting in my toilet all day. pgg - I'd be interested to know what you have as well... feel free to PM me to avoid further derailment of this thread.

Sorry for the brief hi-jack, craitie! Good luck on whatever you get done, I'd really like to have it done before residency as well.

 

[soorg]

I have bad myopia; been wearing glasses since I was 8 and have hated it ever since. But I will never get LASIK. What if you have a complication? According to www.lasikcomplications.com, the complication rate is 20%. I'm happy for the folks that have had successful surgeries, but if you're part of the 20% that have complications, you're not going to care about the other 80% that are doing well post-op.

As already stated, I also don't know of a single opthalmologist that has gotten LASIK. That's reason enough for me.

Apparently there's a permanent contact lens that's available in Europe. Basically it's a reversible form of LASIK. Waiting for FDA approval on that...

 

[periopdoc]

Minus 9 bilaterally. Considering phakic intraoccular lenses as the new lenses and I just don't get along so I too am stuck with old-school minimally permeable lenses.

- pod

 

[pgg]

pgg - I'd be interested to know what you have as well...

Ours is a littermaid. We've had it forever. The litter robot seems to get better reviews, but the biggest problem we've had with it is that it is easy to forget about it for a couple weeks and then its bin gets overfull/stuck and it's a pain to empty.

 

[OB1🤙]

Was considering the surgery until I got Acuvue Oasys contacts. They're frigging wonderful. I don't feel them at all, not one little bit. Had I not found such a comfortable contact (that can be slept with if need be), I'd have gotten LASIK by now.

 

[Apollyon]

I had LASIK in 2006. I had it at Duke, with one of the top 12 guys in the country - he had 12K procedures. My prior Rx was -4.5 and -2.5, and the eval picked up a very mild astigmatism (which was news to me). I was 35 when I had it.

It was $1900/eye ($700/eye discount for being house staff). Mine was automated - the only thing done manually was the flap (a later eye exam had an ophtho ask if I had the machine flap, and I said "no", and told him who did it, and he said "Oh, I understand now" - the flap was that good). The laser was the VISX Star S4. The automated was 25X more accurate than manual, so that is why I waited.

I had no halos and no ghosting. I had minimal dry eye, which resolved.

Oh, and the cornea fellow never touched me. All he did was ask me "What time is it?" after the procedure, and, for the first time in 22 years, I said "2:10" without needing spectacles.

 

[craitie]

After long careful consideration I decided to get it. I'm post-LASIK day 7 and loving it so far. 20/20 with both eyes. Still a little dry in the eyes but already feels better than post-LASIK day 1 so hopefully the trend continues. Thank you to all for all the posts and now I might have to consider getting the automated kitty-litter disposal... 🙂

 

[doctor712]

After long careful consideration I decided to get it. I'm post-LASIK day 7 and loving it so far. 20/20 with both eyes. Still a little dry in the eyes but already feels better than post-LASIK day 1 so hopefully the trend continues. Thank you to all for all the posts and now I might have to consider getting the automated kitty-litter disposal... 🙂

I had LASIK in 2006. I had it at Duke, with one of the top 12 guys in the country - he had 12K procedures. My prior Rx was -4.5 and -2.5, and the eval picked up a very mild astigmatism (which was news to me). I was 35 when I had it.

It was $1900/eye ($700/eye discount for being house staff). Mine was automated - the only thing done manually was the flap (a later eye exam had an ophtho ask if I had the machine flap, and I said "no", and told him who did it, and he said "Oh, I understand now" - the flap was that good). The laser was the VISX Star S4. The automated was 25X more accurate than manual, so that is why I waited.

I had no halos and no ghosting. I had minimal dry eye, which resolved.

Oh, and the cornea fellow never touched me. All he did was ask me "What time is it?" after the procedure, and, for the first time in 22 years, I said "2:10" without needing spectacles.

Apollyon,

Sounds like my experience. Though mine cost 3000 per eye and the dude also had numbers like yours. I awoke and looked at the clock that afternoon and, for the first time in 30 years, at that time, I could tell the time without assistance. 👍👍:thumb up:

Congrats Craitie, it's a great feeling, right?!

I'm 8 years post Lasik and eyes are as good as day after surgery. They also discovered a mild astigmatism during pre-op.

D712

 

[deleted9493]

I had my procedure done in Windsor Ontario toward the end of medical school in Michigan. My surgeon had done about 30k of them. I still remember that feeling of lying down with the world a blur and then sitting up off the table a few minutes later seeing 20/20. On follow-up the next day, it was 20/15 and has stayed that way for 4 years.

Haloing for a week. Dryish eyes for maybe a month. No issues since. Honestly, even if I did have some haloing or dry eyes, they weren't side effects that were really THAT noticeable. I've never had problems in the OR or any other environment after that first month.

 

[soonerfrog]

Like most have said, LASIK is essentially a miraculous gift from God lending sight to those of us who would otherwise only see with the aid off "Hubble Technology" eyewear.

 

[coldweatherblue]

was -2.00 in both eyes, had LASIK a year ago. I'll repeat what was said; best money i've ever spent other than maybe on a 23 year old BMW. 🙂

spent $1k per eye total, 20/15 in both eyes, painless, quick procedure. No problems with halos. Minor dry eyes occasionally during first 2 months. Still use natural tears 1-2x weekly. Was worried about flap dislodgment, etc prior to procedure but in the past year I've taken some pretty nasty wipeouts in 10 foot surf (like face first, open eyes into the water at speed during my bottom turn) and no problems.

Key is finding a surgeon who has done 10k+ procedures. My surgeon published a report detailing outcomes of about 1000 of his LASIK pts, IRB approved, etc, w/ 98% of pts having 20/20 or better vision and 0% having worse vision than prior to the operation. Having LASIK with an experienced surgeon is a very safe, effective medical procedure.

 

[MTGas2B]

I had LASIK on one eye just about 18 months ago, with perfect results. Had some halo / double vision in that eye at night looking at bright lights for a few days, totally resolved within a week.

Some dryness for 1-2 months, which did fine with daily eye drops. Occasionally still get some dryness in that eye, especially if I'm tired. Never noticed the OR making it worse.


LASIK has taken the #1 position on my "best money ever spent" list, displacing the previous champion, an automatic self-cleaning cat litter box.

Did you go out in town for yours?

 

[pgg]

Did you go out in town for yours?

Yes. I sat on a waiting list in Portsmouth for almost 3 years before PCS'ing, then moved out here and didn't even try to navigate the process from square 1 again. I found a place in Fresno that had the equipment and procedure I wanted, done by a guy who's done a lot, and wrote a $2600 check. (Two eyes would've been $4400.)

 

[Dusn]

Was considering the surgery until I got Acuvue Oasys contacts. They're frigging wonderful. I don't feel them at all, not one little bit. Had I not found such a comfortable contact (that can be slept with if need be), I'd have gotten LASIK by now.

Don't ever sleep in your contacts, no matter what it says on the box. That's just a stupid marketing gimmick. You still have an increased risk of corneal ulcers by sleeping in contacts and I don't understand how contact lens manufacturers are allowed to get away with saying that it's safe to sleep in them. A 17x higher risk of corneal ulcers by wearing contacts properly and over 100x the risk if you sleep in them is what our ophtho books tell us (although the baseline risk of the general population is fairly low).

Plenty of ophthalmologist having gotten LASIK or PRK. Everyone in my ophtho residency class who wore glasses got LASIK after one of our attendings offered to waive his surgical fee for us (still had to pay the LASIK center fee).

The older attendings won't often get it because if they're near the age of needing cataract surgery, there's no point in having LASIK. If you're over 40, you'll probably then need glasses for reading, unless you go for monovision. And the older attendings lived through Radial Keratectomy, which is the refractive procedure they did in the 80's, and it kind of sucked.

I'd choose PRK over LASIK personally, but it's a minor difference. There are some rare risks with that flap.

 

[MTGas2B]

Yes. I sat on a waiting list in Portsmouth for almost 3 years before PCS'ing, then moved out here and didn't even try to navigate the process from square 1 again. I found a place in Fresno that had the equipment and procedure I wanted, done by a guy who's done a lot, and wrote a $2600 check. (Two eyes would've been $4400.)

Been thinking about it. I wonder how long our wait list is?

When you were on the list at NMCP did they have a four tier priority system? If so, where did you fall in on that?

 

[Random Anesthesiologist]

One of the best miracles of modern science.

I was -5.5 and -6. Blind as a bat.

Now I'm 20/20. No more glasses or contacts hassles.

I get small halos around lights at night when I drive. Not a big deal.

I also had it done almost 20 yrs. ago.

For the people who like to dive in the turquoise stuff.... I've never had a problem... although I've only tested 100ft a handful of times (usually @ 30-60)

I had mine done 10 years ago and about the same vision as you. When I'm tired I get slight halos too, but also not a big deal. I also have never had a problem with diving, to about 130ft though.

 

[deansrv72]

Minus 9 bilaterally. Considering phakic intraoccular lenses as the new lenses and I just don't get along so I too am stuck with old-school minimally permeable lenses.

- pod

i'm no expert, but i just have to chime in here. i've recently spoken to three eye docs, one of them a friend. not one has recommended the phakic procedure, as all say too risky, and not enough n= to determine efficacy/safety/success.

for me, lasik (intralase) was a no-brainer. i had astigmatism on the right. after lasik, i too see slight halos around street lights and digital numbers. but i would do it again if needed. i'm going on my fourth golf season, and i love it.

 

[michigangirl]

but my birth control glasses are so hot!

 

[HiddenGentleman]

Just got it a couple weeks ago. Very happy with the results. Very minimal night glaring at first that is almost gone now. 20/25 at my last exam, the ophthalmologist said he expects it to be 20/20 by the end of the month. This will be very nice for intern year starting next month.