Hi, I'm considering having LASIK surgery, I was wondering about the experience of other residents after having the procedure (surgical and non-surgical residents). Any problems at work? Problems with bedside procedure? In the O.R? Glare/Halo at night?
Thanks.
Had it done three years ago. Better than 20/20 in both eyes following the procedure and still.
No sequelae apart from 2-3 months of dry eyes, which is normal, and you'll be given drops for anyway. Mesopic/scotopic halos were gone by about 6 weeks or so, and they were never bad.
You won't be offered PRK unless your pachymetry at first consultation shows you have thin corneas. PRK doesn't involve flap-cutting; standard LASIK does. They need to ablate corneal stroma with the laser, so people with thinner corneas don't have the luxury of a superficial flap to be spared.
Healing is worse following PRK and you'd need a corneal "band aid." Most people don't need PRK.
The worse your prescription the more corneal stroma needs to be ablated (they're making your cornea more flat/divergent). The ablation causes superficial corneal nerve damage, which leads to the dry eye, because normally external stimuli (e.g., air) activate the nerves and cause lacrimation.
If you're worse than ~minus 7-9 in each eye, depending on your corneal thickness, you'd need the intraocular collamer lens.
Your chance of chronic dry eye (most common sequela) is greatest if you have pre-existing dry eye, thinner corneas, and require more ablation. The corneal nerves will return to almost full density within 6 months (according to the literature).
