Would you "risk" Lasik before starting clinicals?

[osteohopeful09]

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I have a desire to get Lasik in the short break before my clinical years start.

I say "risk", because I know a small %age of the population has an adverse result of the surgery....

So, I have glasses, but I'd really REALLY love to be rid of them (I am near-sighted)

 

[hrandani]

Look into PRK, I felt like it was less risky and the results are usually better. It takes longer though to heal.

 

[OveractiveBrain]

I didnt bother. I wear glasses. My reading of small print is not yet over. Maybe, maybe once residency is over and my vision has plateaued I'd do it. If you have a gross aversion to glasses or contacts and it will make you feel better, or more confident, I'd go for it.

Anecdotally speaking, of the 60 some odd people I know who have had it done (in medicine and not), literally everyone loves it and no one has any problems. So long as you don't get a coke-addicted physician or go to a training center, opthos are so well-versed in this procedure that its so very unlikely to cause any harm.

I wouldn't bother with it quite yet unless you've really got an itching to be free of corrective lenses.

 

[admiralbean]

How high is your prescription? Have you thought about trying ortho-k? You wear a rigid contact lens overnight that temporarily reshapes your cornea. You are able to go the next day without wearing your glasses/cls. A downside is it really only works well for those with prescriptions of -4.00 and under with no to low amounts of astigmatism. It's a nice non-surgical alternative.

 

[Revilla]

I'm struggling with a similar dilemma, but my procedure is a little different. I'm extremely farsighted (+13) and I saw a doctor who may be able to do a procedure to help me see better. It'll never be 20/20, but the surgery, coupled with contacts/glasses should be as close as I'll ever get.

Like you, I'm worried about the risks (and I have a pre-existing medical condition as well, which is why I have to coordinate between different doctors and really consider the risks), but I just want to be able to see really well during rotations. If I don't do the surgery, I'll end up wearing my glasses (which are extremely thick) during rotations or wearing my contacts with a pair of thin prescription glasses over them.

 

[WDeagle]

Go for it. Just carry eye drops in your white coat. Your eyes are gonna get dry dry dry especially in the OR. Although i would imagine contact lenses would be a bigger pain in the OR.

 

[p30doc]

I had custom lasik this past august, I am loving it no regrets so far.

 

[imer]

I'm struggling with a similar dilemma, but my procedure is a little different. I'm extremely farsighted (+13) and I saw a doctor who may be able to do a procedure to help me see better. It'll never be 20/20, but the surgery, coupled with contacts/glasses should be as close as I'll ever get.

Like you, I'm worried about the risks (and I have a pre-existing medical condition as well, which is why I have to coordinate between different doctors and really consider the risks), but I just want to be able to see really well during rotations. If I don't do the surgery, I'll end up wearing my glasses (which are extremely thick) during rotations or wearing my contacts with a pair of thin prescription glasses over them.

phakic lens implant?

 

[Jolie South]

Go for it. Just carry eye drops in your white coat. Your eyes are gonna get dry dry dry especially in the OR. Although i would imagine contact lenses would be a bigger pain in the OR.

I had custom LASIK and I can say that for several months afterward you're supposed to use non-preservative drops every 10 minutes to ensure proper healing. I think if you have surgery scheduled after break, it would be a no-go.

If you have a rotation like medicine or pedi or something, where you're not limited in putting drops in your eyes, you could do it.

 

[Singh]

Hey,
I had custom-LASIK just before my internship mainly to avoid using glasses during nightshifts (or risk real dry eyes with contacts). The surgery solved this issue, although I did have dry eyes for quite some time (-> can be managed with artificial tears).
You need to consider the risks there are with surgery before you go any further. If you can manage with glasses (and occasionally contacts), then I would probably not recommend it. I hated wearing glasses, and only wore contacts.
My contacts were -4,75 and -4,25.

 

[Revilla]

phakic lens implant?

Not sure what it is. I have some paperwork on it, but it's at home and I'm visiting family for the holidays.

 

[imer]

Not sure what it is. I have some paperwork on it, but it's at home and I'm visiting family for the holidays.

..

 

[Doctopus]

n = 1, but I (and my father) had poor experiences with custom laser vision correction.

I had wave-guided PRK and my father had LASIK.

Both of us have diminished low-light vision as a result. If you put me in a dimly lit movie theater, bar, dusk situation, I have a lot of trouble. Low-light situations (looking inside your backpack) in otherwise well-lit areas are also problematic. It's not fatal but it's definitely noticeable and has detracted from my life in numerous ways.

From what I've read online this (under-publicized) situation is highly correlated with having light (ie, blue) eyes and pupils that tend to dilate a lot in low-light settings. The laser seems to become increasingly unreliable at reshaping your cornea the further from the center of your pupil it goes.....or some such.

In regular light situations I am fine. I still wear glasses though as my vision is something like 20/30 with residual astigmatism post-PRK.

 

[Melicopter]

From what I've read online this (under-publicized) situation is highly correlated with having light (ie, blue) eyes and pupils that tend to dilate a lot in low-light settings. The laser seems to become increasingly unreliable at reshaping your cornea the further from the center of your pupil it goes.....or some such.

In regular light situations I am fine. I still wear glasses though as my vision is something like 20/30 with residual astigmatism post-PRK.

Were your eyes light-sensitive before the procedure? I ask because I have terrible vision and light blue/gray eyes, which are already very sensitive to light. I don't drive well at night or do anything well in low-light settings, but I would love to be able to at least wander around my house without glasses or contacts and not walk into things. On the other hand, if my night vision got worse than it already is, that would be pretty debilitating.

 

[JMaui]

Don't forget to talk to your optometrist about your options.

As another optometry student suggested, orthokeratology (ORTHO-K) is a nice alternative to surgery. Of course we can't forget the fact that you have to wear the hard lenses overnight- for corneal reshaping. With unpredictable hours of sleep this may not be the best option for you.

 

[Kahlan]

The problem with Lasik isn't necessarily the surgery itself; it's the follow-up. You have to get check-ups fairly frequently for the first few months to make sure the corneal flap is healing flat. That may be hard to schedule if you are on rotations. Also, like someone said earlier, your eyes will be dry for several months, so you will have to put eyedrops in several times an hour. That is just not logistically possible on some rotations. As far as the surgery itself, the worse the prescription, the higher risk for adverse effects or that the results will be less than optimal. I had Lasik done prior to medical school, and I love it, even though they had to redo my right eye twice. The first time was because the correction did not correct enough of the problem. The second time was because I rubbed my eye before the flap had healed fully, so I wrinkled the flap. However, both situations are highly unlikely to occur with you; I had a very high prescription, which complicated matters.